Italian police have arrested an Iraqi man named Hussein Saber Fadhil said to be part of a group linked to al Qaeda. Some reports claim Fadhil was arrested at the Venice airport, and others in Padua, but it is clear that the arrest warrant was issued by a judge in Venice.

Hussien Saber Fadhil was on his way to Damascus, Syria, where he would then meet up with other jihadis who have already been involved in multiple kidnappings and murder in Iraq. The group is said to be "close" to al Qaeda in Iraq, whether it is the Islamic State of Iraq--which would make it more than "close" to al Qaeda, that is al Qaeda--or other Salafist terrorists affiliated with them has not been disclosed.

Reports say that Hussien Saber Fadhil is a former member of the Baath partyand indicate that he felt betrayed by nationalist fighters who have turned on al Qaeda in Diyala and Anbar. He recently learned to fly an airplane. The plot would have packed a small airplane with explosives using it as an suicide bomb.

The 45 year old man is said to have been carrying with him items which he would use in the plot. My best guess would be some kind of GPS equipment.

The police are also searching the homes of other Iraqis in Italy.

UPDATE: This AP story sheds some more light on Fadhil, that he:

had been in touch with aides of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the founder of al-Qaida in Iraq ....

"It is documented that he was in contact with the al-Qaida in Iraq terrorist group," D'Auria told The Associated Press by telephone. "He was organizing an attack against American bases in Iraq."

The attack would have employed suicide bombers, anti-tank weapons and ultra-light helicopters that the group planned to buy from an Italian company, investigators said.

Hussein has lived in Italy for 25 years selling kebobs at a kiosk. 25 years in Italy, and he still supported al Qaeda? Talk about an integration problem.

He was sending $4,200 a month to Iraq to support the al Qaeda cell. How can a kebob seller afford to send that much money a month to Iraq? I'm guessing he also raised funds from others. Probably start at the mosque he attended and go from there. Sources: AFP, Stratfor, Reuters, EuxTV, AP

Posted by: Rusty at 03:09 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 410 words, total size 3 kb.