Chairman Kean, Vice Chairman Hamilton, and members
of the Commission, thank you for this opportunity to
appear before you and the American people today to
discuss the FBI's Counterterrorism mission.
I am honored today to speak to you on behalf of the dedicated men and women of
the FBI who are working around the clock and all over the globe to combat terrorism.
The FBI remains committed to fighting the threats posed by terrorism. But by
no means do we fight this battle alone. I want to take a moment to thank our
law enforcement and Intelligence Community partners, both domestic and international,
for their invaluable assistance and support.
I also thank this Commission. The FBI appreciates
your tremendous efforts to make recommendations that
will help the FBI evolve to meet and defeat terrorist
threats. We will continue to work closely with you
and your staff to provide access to FBI personnel and
information, for the purpose of ultimately strengthening
the security of our Nation.
To the
victims and family members that suffer as a result
of the horrific attacks of September 11, 2001--and
all acts of terrorism--the FBI has been heartened by
your gratitude and mindful of your criticism. Under
Director Mueller's leadership, the FBI has not merely
begun a process of considered review--it has engaged
in an unprecedented transformation. Today, the FBI
is better positioned to fulfill its highest priority: "to
Protect the United States from Terrorist attack."
The FBI employs a multifaceted approach in order
to accomplish its mission. With approximately 28,000
sworn agents and support employees, and jurisdiction
to investigate hundreds of crimes, the FBI is ideally
positioned to exploit the inherent nexus between crime
and terrorism. We have learned that to be of value,
intelligence must be collected, exploited, and shared.
The FBI's ability to deploy any required resources--at
a moment's notice--to locations around the world in
order to assist in the collection of intelligence and
recovery of evidence has proven invaluable in providing
us with an understanding of the tradecraft of terrorism.
Since September 11, 2001, the FBI and our partners
have made huge strides towards creating an environment
where information is exploited and shared at the federal,
state, local and international levels. We have upgraded
our computer systems. We have significantly expanded
our Joint Terrorism Task Forces (JTTF), and have hired
additional language experts.
Since September 11th, the FBI has investigated more
than 4,000 threats to the U.S. and the number of active
FBI investigations into potential terrorist activity
has quadrupled. Working with our partners, we have
also disrupted terrorist activities on multiple occasions
inside the U.S., primarily terrorist financing operations.
In order to achieve success in this war on terror,
we have transformed the FBI's Counterterrorism Division
and program from one that was primarily reactive to
one that is more collaborative and proactive; we have
transformed the Intelligence Program and Integrated
Criminal and Intelligence Operations; we have improved
information sharing with other federal agencies and
state and local governments; and enhanced our operational
capabilities within FBIHQ and all local Field Offices.
I will outline the details of these efforts for you
today.
Cultural and Organizational Transformation:
• We created the Foreign Terrorist Tracking Task Force (FTTTF) to keep
foreign terrorists and their supporters out of the U.S.
• We established the National Joint Terrorism Task Force (NJTTF) to act
as a liaison and conduit for information from FBI Headquarters to the JTTFs and
to 38 participating agencies.
• We established Flying Squads, highly mobile response teams with specialized
expertise in counterterrorism, languages, and analysis.
• We established the Counterterrorism Watch Unit, a 24-hour central clearinghouse
for terrorist threats and intelligence.
• We established the Communications Exploitation Section, which analyzes
and exploits the methods of communication by terrorists.
• We established the Document Exploitation Unit, which identifies and disseminates
intelligence gleaned from millions of pages of documents or computers seized
overseas.
• We established the interagency Terrorist Financing Operations Section
(TFOS). The TFOS is devoted entirely to the financial aspects of terrorism investigations
and liaison with the financial services industry. Since September 11, 2001, the
FBI has frozen millions of dollars in financial assets of organizations that
support terrorism.
• We
crafted and promulgated to all FBI Field Offices
the Model Counterterrorism Investigative Strategy,
which is the blueprint for conducting intelligence
driven and intelligence focused investigations. All
FBI International Terrorism investigations now follow
this prescribed approach.
Transformation of the Intelligence Program and Integrated
Criminal and Intelligence Operations:
• Investigations of international terrorism are by definition both "intelligence" and "criminal" investigations.
They are intelligence investigations because their objective is "the detection
and countering of international terrorist activities," and they employ the
authorities and investigative tools that are reserved for the intelligence mission
of protecting the U.S. against attack or other harm by foreign entities. They
are criminal investigations since international terrorism against the U.S. constitutes
a violation of the federal criminal code.
• Before September 11, 2001, due to limitations of the legal "wall",
intelligence agents and criminal investigators working on a terrorist target
had to proceed without knowing what the other may have been doing about the same
target. In short, we were fighting international terrorism with one arm tied
behind our back. The USA PATRIOT Act, coupled with the FISA Court of Review decision
and ensuing Attorney General Guidelines, eliminated this "wall" and
has enabled unprecedented information sharing, not only within the FBI, but with
all our partners.
• Recognizing
that the key to preventing terrorist attacks is the
development of a robust intelligence
base, we have placed tremendous emphasis on building
a strong intelligence capability, which you will hear
more about this afternoon.
Improvements in Information Sharing:
• We formed the NJTTF, and expanded the number of JTTFs from 35, prior
to September 11, 2001, to 84 today, with over 4,200 federal, state, and local
law enforcement officers. The JTTFs partner FBI personnel with investigators
from federal, state, and local agencies across the country and are critical force
multipliers in our fight against terrorism. It is these police officers across
the U.S. who are on the front lines in this fight and to whom we all owe a debt
of gratitude for their tireless efforts.
• We
disseminated thousands of Information Intelligence
Reports to the Intelligence Community,
and state and local law enforcement where permissible
• We established the FBI Intelligence Bulletin, which is disseminated weekly
to more than 17,000 law enforcement agencies and to 60 federal agencies. Many
bulletins are joint publications with the Department of Homeland Security.
Enhancement of Operational Capabilities within FBIHQ
and the Field Offices:
• We
shifted 480 Special Agents to counterterrorism investigations.
Thanks to bipartisan congressional
support, the FBI's Counterterrorism Program has experienced
a 99 percent increase in total personnel and a 101
percent increase in total funding since September 11,
2001.
• We
centralized Program Management, which ensures accountability
for the national terrorism program
and for investigations that require national-level
management. This change reflects the reality that counterterrorism
investigations have national and international dimensions
that transcend field office territorial borders and
require centralized direction and coordination.
With the help of the Intelligence Community and our
state and local law enforcement partners, the FBI has
identified and dismantled terrorist cells and individuals
across the country, including in Buffalo, Cincinnati,
Baltimore, Tampa, Newark, New York and Minneapolis.
I have previously provided other classified examples
of some of our intelligence successes to the Commission
in closed session.
Mr. Chairman, it is important to note that we attribute
our successes to our close coordination and information
sharing with other members of the Intelligence Community,
with our overseas partners, and with the essential
force multipliers--the state and local law enforcement
officials who participate on our Joint Terrorism Task
Forces (JTTFs), who have and will continue to play
a central role in our collective mission to prevent
terrorism.
The initiatives that I have discussed today are just
a few of the FBI's many innovative measures taken to
transform the way we do business. Continued enhancement
of our intelligence capabilities will ensure that the
FBI is able to fulfill its criminal and intelligence
responsibilities, and, moreover, its mission of terrorism
prevention.
The nation calls upon the FBI to protect its citizens. We at the FBI will always
answer that call. We remain committed to accomplishing our mission.
Additional
Background Material
for the
National Commission on
Terrorist Attacks upon the United States
April 14, 2004
Since September 11, 2001, the FBI's Counterterrorism
program has made rapid, comprehensive changes in order
to meet its primary mission of detecting, disrupting
and defeating terrorist operations before they occur.
This document summarizes many of our new initiatives
and improvements.
Improved Information Sharing and Operational Coordination
Since September 11, 2001, the FBI has undertaken a number of initiatives to
improve information sharing and coordination with our national and international
partners. We began by quickly increasing the number of Joint Terrorism
Task Forces (JTTFs) across the country, bringing the number up from 35 to 84 nationwide.
The JTTFs partner FBI personnel with hundreds of investigators from various
Federal, State, and local agencies and are important force multipliers in
the fight against terrorism.
We also
established a National Joint Terrorism Task
Force (NJTTF) at FBI Headquarters, staffed by representatives
from 38 Federal, State, and local agencies. The NJTTF
liaisons with the local JTTFs and other participating
agencies and acts as a conduit for information on terrorists
threats and leads. The mission of the NJTTF is to enhance
communication, coordination, and cooperation by acting
as the "hub" of support for the JTTFs throughout
the United States, providing a point of fusion for
terrorism intelligence to support its operations. In
order to fulfill this mission, the NJTTF has coordinated
efforts to establish the FBI's Law Enforcement
Online (LEO) virtual private network as the primary Internet-based
information sharing platform for all law enforcement
agencies in the United States. LEO operates in a "law
enforcement sensitive" environment, enabling any
law enforcement agency with a LEO account and an Internet
connection to share terrorism information with JTTFs.
The NJTTF is also working with LEO and the FBI's Office
of Law Enforcement Coordination on the FBI Electronic
National Alert System, which instantly notifies law
enforcement of incidents that need immediate attention.
This system was implemented in October 2003 and distributes
instant messages directly to LEO accounts and the personal
electronic device (e.g. pagers, personal digital assistants,
cell phones, etc.) of participating law enforcement
officers.
In February
2002, the FBI disseminated the first FBI
Intelligence Bulletin. Since then, more than 120
bulletins have gone out to more than 18,000 law enforcement
agencies and 60 U.S. Government agencies and their
subcomponents, as well as government agencies in the
United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, and Australia.
The FBI Intelligence Bulletin is disseminated every
Wednesday – with additional Special Edition Bulletins
issued as circumstances warrant – through four
mechanisms: LEO, the National Law Enforcement Telecommunications
System (NLETS), the National Threat Warning System
teletype, and the Regional Information Sharing System
(RISS).
In May 2003, the Department of Homeland Security,
the FBI, the Central Intelligence Agency, the State
Department, and the Department of Defense formed the
Terrorist Threat Integration Center (TTIC) to assess
terrorism related intelligence collected domestically
and abroad to form the most comprehensive possible
threat picture. This summer, the TTIC, along with a
portion of the FBI's Counterterrorism Division and
the Director of Central Intelligence's Counterterrorist
Center, will be co-located in a single new facility.
On December 1, 2003, the FBI, in conjunction with
the Department of Homeland Security and State and
members of the Intelligence Community, stood up the
Terrorist Screening Center (TSC). The mission of the TSC is to use information
derived from the U.S. Intelligence Community and law enforcement agencies to
identify known or suspected terrorists who are pulled over during routine traffic
stops, who are screened while attempting to enter the U.S., or who apply for
a VISA overseas. The TSC will consolidate unclassified identifiers from U.S.
Government terrorist databases and provide 24/7 operational support for thousands
of Federal, state, and local screeners across the country and around the world.
The TSC will ensure that government investigators, screeners, and agents are
working off the same unified, comprehensive set of anti-terrorist information,
and that they have access to information and expertise that will allow them
to act quickly when a suspected terrorist is screened or stopped. In its first
two-and-a-half months of operation, the TSC received 1,848 calls from state,
federal, and local law enforcement personnel, based on potential matches with
known terrorists. This resulted in 740 positive identifications, some of whom
have been apprehended and some of whom have been developed into informants
or subjected to surveillance. On March 11, 2004, the TSC began using the Terrorist
Screening Database (TSDB). TSDB is the result of TSC's efforts to consolidate
the disparate information currently held by multiple agencies and used in different
ways into one unclassified law enforcement sensitive database that contains
identifying information of known or suspected terrorists. The TSDB serves a
single purpose – to help identify and detain potential terrorists in
order to prevent future terrorist attacks.
On December 3, 2003, the FBI created a new Office
of Law Enforcement Coordination (OLEC) to enhance the
ability of the FBI to enhance cooperation and substantive
relationships with all of our State and local law enforcement
counterparts. The OLEC, which is run by a former Chief
of Police, also has liaison responsibilities with the
White House Homeland Security Council.
In addition,
the FBI has moved to enhance the capabilities of
its international Legal Attaché (Legat) offices.
In the aftermath of the September 11 attacks, and throughout
the following year, FBI Legats facilitated the rapid
deployment of approximately 700 FBI personnel overseas.
Last year, FBI Legats handled approximately 53,000
leads. The FBI's Legat program currently consists of
46 offices around the world, and new offices have been
opened or are projected to open in the following locations:
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia;
Sanaa, Yemen; Tbilisi, Georgia; and Tunis, Tunisia.
In addition, the establishment of three sub-offices
of existing Legats in Bonn, Germany (Legat Berlin);
Milan, Italy (Legat Rome); and Toronto, Canada (Legat
Ottawa) is being reviewed. The Legats in Amman, Islamabad,
Manila, Ottawa, Riyadh, and Cairo are being augmented
with additional personnel.
Improved Analytical and Intelligence Capabilities
In October 2001, the FBI established a College of Analytical Studies (CAS)
in order to provide training for all FBI analytical support personnel. The
curriculum was developed with the recommendations and participation of the
CIA, the Joint Military Intelligence College, and private educational institutions.
The training consists of basic and advanced courses at Quantico, as well
as CIA courses for FBI field personnel. Last year, more than 900 analysts
completed the six-week training course. This training and stepped-up recruitment
efforts have allowed us to dramatically increase the number of analysts dedicated
to counterterrorism, from 218 in FY 2001 to 461 last year. Our FY 2004 appropriation
is for 872.
By February 2002, the FBI had established an Intelligence
Program and stood up the Office of Intelligence (OI),
led by an Executive Assistant Director (EAD) for Intelligence.
The OI is staffed by FBI and CIA analysts who examine
intelligence and ensure it is shared within the FBI,
among JTTFs, and with TTIC and the rest of the U.S.
Intelligence Community. In addition, the OI designs
and manages a high-level daily intelligence product
for the Director and other key FBI executives. This
product helps prepare the Director for his daily briefings
to the President and the Attorney General. In the period
from October 2002 to September 2003, the FBI produced
2,425 Intelligence Reports.
The FBI
has always operated as both a law enforcement and
an intelligence agency. It has a dual mission to
investigate and arrest the perpetrators of completed
crimes (our "law enforcement mission") and
to collect intelligence that will help prevent future
crimes and assist policy makers in their decision making
(our "intelligence mission"). History has
shown that we are most effective in protecting the
U.S. when we perform these two missions in tandem.
Revised Training Curriculum for New Agents
The FBI has expanded the integration of counterterrorism and counterintelligence
training into every facet of New Agents training. Since September 11, 2001,
an additional 32 hours of counterterrorism and counterintelligence training
have been added to the curriculum, for a total of 55 hours. Last year, a
number of additional in-service courses were offered, including: Basic International
Terrorism Operations, Basic Analyst School, Advanced Analytical courses,
and Counterterrorism Management for field supervisors. In addition, all FBI
field offices provide eight hours of counterterrorism awareness training.
Enhanced Language Translation Capability
The FBI's approximately 1,200 translators are stationed across 52 field offices
and Headquarters, and are now connected via secure networks that allow a
translator in one FBI office to work on projects for any other office. Since
the beginning of FY 2001, we have recruited and processed more than 30,000
translator applicants. These efforts have resulted in the addition of nearly
700 new linguists with a "Top Secret" security clearance.
In addition,
shortly after September 11, 2001, we formed a Language
Services Translation Center to act
as a "command and control" center to coordinate
translator assignments and ensure our capacity to render
immediate translation assistance. On February 11, 2003,
in accordance with the USA PATRIOT Act, the Director
of the CIA established the National Virtual
Translation Center (NVTC) and designated the FBI as its Executive
Agent. Like the Language Services Translation Center,
this Center acts at a clearinghouse to provide timely
translations for Intelligence community Agencies.
Increased Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA)
Collection
FISA coverage has increased significantly since September 11, 2001, reflecting
both our increased focus on counterterrorism and counterintelligence investigations
and improvement in the operation of the FISA process. From 2001 to 2003 the
number of FISA applications filed annually with the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance
Court increased by 85 percent. The FISA Court's granting of such FISAs has
helped us investigate terrorist networks and operations and disrupt terrorist
plots. In addition, the USA PATRIOT Act made a number of important changes
to FISA procedures that have assisted our counterterrorism efforts. The most
important of these was the dismantling of many of the walls between criminal
and intelligence operations. This provision has given us the ability to coordinate
our intelligence and criminal investigations and to use the full range of investigative
tools against a suspected terrorist.
For example, on the intelligence side of an investigation,
we can conduct surveillance on the suspected terrorist
to learn about his movements and identify possible
confederates, we can obtain FISA authority to monitor
his conversations, and/or we can approach and attempt
to cultivate him as a source or an operational asset.
On the criminal side, we now have the option of incapacitating
him through arrest, detention, and prosecution. Lowering
the wall allows us to continuously balance the opportunity
to develop intelligence against the need to apprehend
the suspect and prevent him from carrying out his terrorist
plans. This integrated approach has guided our operations,
and it has successfully foiled terrorist plots from
Seattle, Washington, to Detroit, Michigan, to Lackawanna,
New York.
Specialized New Counterterrorism Units
On September 11, 2001, we established the Counterterrorism
(CT) Watch Unit (then called the "Executive Watch"), as the FBI's 24-hour central
clearinghouse for terrorist threats and actionable intelligence. As the FBI's "Threat
Central," CT Watch is the focal point for the receipt, preliminary analysis,
and immediate assignment for action on all terrorism threats. It ensures that
all FBI Field Offices and Legal Attachés, all relevant government leaders
and agencies, all JTTFs, and all state and local law enforcement agencies receive
timely notification of terrorist threats. CT Watch is also responsible for
producing several daily publications, including:
• The
Director's Daily Briefing Book (DDBB), which contains
a daily update on all significant threat
information and updates on current terrorism investigations.
• The FBI Daily Counterterrorism Update (DCTU), which
contains a summary of significant ongoing or very recent
incidents that may be terrorism related.
• The Daily Intelligence Summary (DIS), which contains
a daily update of significant intelligence collected
concerning terrorist operations.
We also established the interagency Terrorist
Financing Operations Section (TFOS), which is devoted entirely
to the financial aspects of terrorism investigations.
TFOS has focused on information sharing and the abilities
of the JTTFs and Criminal Investigative units in the
field to identify, predict and prevent future criminal
enterprises. In cooperation with the financial services
industry, we have frozen more than $172 million in
financial assets from organizations that support terrorism.
In early
2002, we created "Flying Squads" to
provide rapid, highly mobile support in terrorism investigations
around the globe. These teams have expertise in counterterrorism,
FISA requirements, foreign languages, and intelligence
analysis, as well as specialized knowledge of al Qaeda
and familiarity with the U.S. Intelligence Community.
In December 2002, we established the Communications
Exploitation Section, which analyzes terrorist electronic
and telephone communications and identifies terrorist
associations and networks. The following month, we
established the Document Exploitation Unit, which identifies
and disseminates intelligence gleaned from millions
of pages of documents or computers seized overseas
by intelligence agencies.
Restructured Existing Operational Units
In addition to establishing new Counterterrorism Sections and Units, we have
also restructured our existing operational units to provide new or improved
capabilities to address the terrorist threat. A short summary of the functions
and activities of the Counterterrorism Division's other operational units
is provided below.
The Investigative
Operations Branch supports, coordinates,
and manages terrorism-related investigations. It is
comprised of four sections.
The International Terrorism Operations Section I
(ITOS I) supports, coordinates, and provides oversight
of FBI international counterterrorism operations related
to al Qaeda and other Sunni extremist groups.
The International Terrorism Operations Section II (ITOS II) supports, coordinates,
and provides oversight of FBI international counterterrorism operations related
to other groups, such as Hizballah, HAMAS, and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, as
well as the terrorist threat from state sponsors of terrorism.
The Domestic Terrorism Operations Section (DTOS) supports, coordinates, and
provides oversight of FBI domestic counterterrorism operations, including animal
rights extremists and eco-terrorists. In addition, DTOS's Special Events Unit
plays a major role in planning, coordinating, and managing support to field
offices charged with counterterrorism responsibilities for special events such
as the Super Bowl, the Olympic Games, and the Republican and Democratic National
Conventions.
The Terrorism Reports and Requirements Section (TRRS) oversees the dissemination
of raw intelligence reports and executes policies and procedures established
by the Office of Intelligence. Since its inception in 2002, TRRS has disseminated
more than 2,800 intelligence information reports to members of the Intelligence,
Policy, and Law Enforcement Communities. When possible, these reports have
been produced at the unclassified level in to order to allow rapid sharing
information sharing with state and local security entities.
In addition to CT Watch (see above), the National
Threat Center Section (NTCS) administers four other
units relating to threat management.
The Threat
Monitoring Unit (TMU) supports the FBI's operational
role in defending the United States from
the threat of terrorism by receiving, assessing, and
disseminating threat information and suspicious activity
in conjunction with FBIHQ, FBI Field Offices, Legal
Attachés, and the Intelligence Community. Each
month, the TMU processes approximately 1,000 threat
and suspicious activity referrals from various federal,
state and local governmental and law enforcement agencies,
ensuring that the appropriate FBI units, JTTFs, and
other government agencies are expeditiously apprized
of the threat information. In addition, more than 2,700
significant threat and suspicious activity reports
have been recorded into a searchable TMU threats database.
The Public Access Center Unit (PACU) provides the public with safe, reliable,
and effective avenues to report information regarding terrorist and other criminal
activity to the FBI via the Internet and a toll-free telephone hotline. The
unit also analyzes and processes this information for FBI investigative and
intelligence purposes, and for dissemination to appropriate Federal, state,
local, and international agencies. The PACU receives and disseminates approximately
100 threat leads per month. The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security
(DHS) are entering into a 120-day pilot program which will route all DHS Web
site Tip information to the FBI Tip Web site for processing by the PACU. The
unit will then provide DHS with the ability to view and track the work flow
of these tips in real-time and receive immediate notification when any action
leads are sent to the field.
The Terrorist Watch and Warning Unit (TWWU) provides
current terrorist-related intelligence information
and analysis to a broad spectrum of users through the
FBI Intelligence Bulletin (see above). In addition,
the TWWU produces Special Event Threat Assessments
that provide localized strategic threat analysis to
field offices and local law enforcement agencies hosting
large-scale special events such as the Super Bowl,
New Year's Eve festivities and the President's State
of the Union Address. The TWWU has disseminated over
140 Special Event Threat Assessments and updates. The
TWWU is also responsible for the FBI's Terrorist Watch
List (TWL), which is available to nationwide law enforcement
through the National Criminal Information Center (NCIC).
The TWL contains names of current subjects of FBI counterterrorism
investigations.
The Strategic
Information and Operations Center (SIOC) is primarily
an administrative unit which supports
the flow of information among the various FBI units
and among the FBI and outside agencies. Information
concerning significant incidents and case updates is
communicated to SIOC via telephone, e-mail and fax
and is immediately routed to the appropriate outside
agencies, FBIHQ Units, FBI field offices and/or Legats
by the SIOC staff. SIOC also disseminates National
Law Enforcement Telecommunications System (NLETS) messages
to government agencies throughout the U. S., and publishes
the "SIOC Morning Report," a daily summary
of pertinent intelligence articles from the FBI and
the intelligence community, which is distributed to
FBI Field Offices and to JTTF members across the country.
The Counterterrorism Operational Response Section lends critical support in
three areas. It supports the NTTJ; it coordinates deployment of the Headquarters-based
Flying Squads and the field office-based Rapid Deployment Teams; and it conducts
liaison with the Department of Defense (DOD) and manages FBI personnel working
with the military in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and Afghanistan.
The Counterterrorism
Analysis Branch oversees the
bulk of the Counterterrorism Division's intelligence
functions, including analysis, evidence exploitation,
and the preparation and dissemination of finished intelligence
products and briefing materials. Today, the Counterterrorism
Analysis Branch operates with the guidance and oversight
of the FBI's Office of Intelligence and is a vital
part of the FBI's enterprise-wide intelligence program.
It is comprised of two sections.
The Counterterrorism Analysis Section includes five
units whose areas of focus mirror those of the units
in the Investigative Operations Section. In support
of the FBI's counterterrorism operations, these units
examine the composition, activities, tradecraft, ideology,
and linkages of terrorist groups, and they assess terrorist
activities and threats to assist FBI managers in making
decisions about deployments and the allocation of resources.
The
Communications Exploitation Section processes information
and disseminates information derived from
the full range of media. It is an integral participant
in the National Document Exploitation Center process.
Success Stories
Of course, the most important aspect of all of these changes and reorganizations
is the degree to which they have aided the FBI in disrupting and destroying
terrorist threats. Following are a few of the FBI's success stories.
The Lackawanna Six
On September 13, 2002, the FBI arrested five U.S. citizens near Buffalo, New
York (Sahim Alwan, Faysal Galab, Yahya Goba, Shafal Mosed, and Yasein Taher),
charging them with "providing, attempting to provide, and conspiring
to provide material support and resources to a designated foreign terrorist
organization." In addition, Mukhtar Albakri, also a U.S. citizen, was
rendered from Bahrain to the United States pursuant to an arrest warrant
on the same charges. All six individuals were indicted on these charges on
October 21, 2002. The arrests and indictments were based on information indicating
that these individuals traveled to an Al Qaeda training camp in Afghanistan
in the spring/summer of 2001, where they received military training and were
visited by Usama Bin Laden. All six subjects pled guilty to terrorist related
charges and received prison sentences ranging between seven and ten years.
These subjects are also cooperating with ongoing terrorist investigations
and have provided significant and corroborated reporting.
Benevolence International Foundation
On October 9, 2002, Enaam Arnaout, also known as Samir Motaleb, was indicted
on federal charges for activities he undertook as Executive Director of the
Chicago-based Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) Benevolence International
Foundation (BIF). Arnaout was charged with racketeering, material support
to a designated foreign terrorist, money laundering; mail fraud, and wire
fraud. Aranout and his BIF organization are believed to have provided facilitation,
procurement, and financial support to Al Qaeda and other terrorist organizations.
Portland, Oregon
On October 3, 2002, six individuals were indicted
on federal charges in the District of Oregon. The
six (Ahmed Bilal, his brother, Mohammad Bilal,
Habes
Al-Saoub, Patrice Ford, Jeffrey Battle, and October Lewis) were charged with
conspiracy to levy war against the united states, conspiracy to provide material
support and resources to a terrorist organization, conspiracy to contribute
services to al Qaeda and the Taliban, and possessing firearms in furtherance
of crimes of violence. The following day, Battle, Ford, and Lewis were arrested
in Portland and Muhammad Bilal was arrested in Detroit. Several days later,
Ahmed Bilal was apprehended in Malaysia and returned to the United States.
With the exception of Al-Saoub, these subjects have pled guilty to terrorism
related and money laundering charges and have received federal sentences
ranging from three to eighteen years. The only
subject who has not been brought to
justice, Al-Saoub, is believed to have been killed in Pakistan, by Pakistani
military authorities.
Earnest James Ujamma
On July 22, 2002, Earnest James Ujamma, aka Bilal Ahmed, was arrested on a
material witness warrant. Ahmed is suspected of being involved in a terrorist
training facility in Bly, Oregon and providing other material support to
terrorism. He was indicted on August 28, 2002, of conspiracy to provide material
support and resources to a terrorist organization and possessing firearms
in furtherance of a crime of violence. Bilal Ahmed is an American-born Muslim
convert who has worked for and provided services to Abu Hamza al-Masri. These
services included taking computers to the Taliban prior to U.S. action in
Afghanistan, as well as introducing a current Guantanamo Bay detainee to
individuals at al Qaeda training camps in Afghanistan, enabling their matriculation
into a terror training camp. Ahmed was under investigation based on information
that he (on behalf of the Egyptian-born Sheikh Abu Hamza al-Masri of the
Finsbury Park Mosque in London) provided material support to terrorism by
attempting to establish a training camp in southern Oregon, pursuant to Hamza's
jihad recruiting program, and served as Hamza's representative for the delivery
of cash, computer hardware and software, and at least one combatant to Taliban
and al Qaeda activities inside Afghanistan. Ujamma has pled guilty to terrorism
related charges and has received a two year sentence. This investigation
coupled with Ujamma's cooperation, has provided a wealth of intelligence
which is being pursued aggressively against additional terrorist targets.
Holy Land Foundation
The Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development (HLF) is registered as
a nonprofit humanitarian organization that has conducted fund-raising activities
in the United States. In December 2001 the Department of Treasury's Office
of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated HLF as a Specially Designated Terrorist
(SDT) based on information that HLF provided material support to HAMAS. InfoCom,
a computer company and Internet Service Provider closely associated with HLF,
is being investigated for providing material support to terrorism and multiple
violations of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act for illegal shipments
to state sponsors of terrorism. FBI investigation has determined that InfoCom
is facilitating the HLF's fund-raising efforts via their computer support and
may be assisting HAMAS via covert communications. As a result of a superceding
indictment related to the InfoCom investigation, the Dallas Division arrested
four suspects who had been indicted for terrorist related charges. Two additional
suspects were also indicted, however, they are in fugitive status and remain
at large. The four individuals arrested on these charges are expected to go
to trial in the immediate future. It is important to note that one of the fugitives
is Mousa Marzook, the Deputy Head of the HAMAS Political Bureau and a Specially
Designated Terrorist.
Jewish Defense League
Investigation by the Los Angeles JTTF revealed that Irving Rubin and Earl Krugel
were active members of the Jewish Defense League (JDL), a known violent extremist
Jewish Organization. A Cooperating Witness reported statements made by Rubin
and Krugel indicating a plan to attack the Islamic Muslim Public Affairs Council
(IMPAC) office in Los Angeles or possibly the California office of United States
Congressman Darrell Issa. Statements made by Kruger indicated the motivation
for the attack was to serve as a "wake up call" to the Muslim Community.
Rubin and Krugel were arrested by members of the Los Angeles JTTF for conspiring
to build and place an improvised explosive device at the IMPAC office. Irving
Rubin committed suicide and Earl Krugel's charges are pending.
Ahmad Omar Saeed Sheik
Daniel Pearl, South Asia Bureau Chief for the Wall Street Journal, was kidnaped
in Pakistan on January 23, 2002, and subsequently murdered. The Newark Field
Office assumed the investigation due to the fact that the kidnaping was perpetrated
via internet email through the Dow Jones/Wall Street Journal's computer server
system, which is located in South Brunswick, New Jersey. As a result of exceptional
international law enforcement and intelligence community cooperation, Ahmad
Omar Saeed Sheik, a British national and Islamic radical, was apprehended
in Pakistan in early February 2002. As a result of investigative work into
the source of the e-mailed ransom communications, three other Pakistani nationals – Fahad
Naseem, Salman Saqib, and Sheik Mohamed Adeel – were also apprehended.
All four were charged and convicted under Pakistani law for Pearl's abduction
and murder. Sheik was sentenced to death by hanging and the other three were
sentenced to 25 years in prison.
KKK
On February 12 and 13, 2003, Joshua Caleb Sutter and Davis Wayne Hull, Imperial
Wizard of the White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, were arrested on a range
of charges, including teaching or demonstrating the making and use of a destructive
device, selling illegal weapons, and corruptly persuading a witness with
intent to influence his or her testimony. A search warrant on Hull's property
uncovered fifteen firearms and some pipe bomb components. As the less culpable
party, Sutter pled guilty to weapons violations and awaits sentencing. Hull
was indicted by a Federal Grand Jury on May 13, 2003, and his matter is pending
trial.
EARTH LIBERATION FRONT
Pursuant to an FBI investigation, John Wade, Adam Blackwell, and Aaron Linas
pled guilty to maliciously damaging and destroying vehicles, houses, and
other property in the Richmond, Virginia area during the summer and fall
of 2002. The incidents were claimed on behalf of the Earth Liberation Front
(ELF), and total damages were estimated at approximately $225,000. On April
12, 2004, Aaron Linas was sentenced to 42 months in federal prison. Wade
and Blackwell await sentencing.
We have previously briefed you in closed session
on significant successes in the intelligence arena,
the details of which remain classified.
Terrorism is a global problem that can be solved
only by enhancing our ability to share and act quickly
on information provided to and developed by the international
intelligence and law enforcement communities. The initiatives
detailed in this document represent examples of the
many innovative measures being taken to transform the
way the FBI conducts its business. Continued enhancement
of its intelligence capabilities will ensure that the
FBI is able to fulfill its criminal and counterterrorism
responsibilities in the face of this most serious threat
to the nation.
