Assem Hammoud
Encyclopedia
Assem Hammoud aka Amir Andalousi, a Beirut
native, is an alleged Al Qaeda operative living in Lebanon who was charged with plotting a mission to blow up the PATH
train tunnels beneath the Hudson River between New Jersey
and lower Manhattan, New York City
, United States
with a team of suicide bombers with backpack explosives. He was arrested by the Lebanese Armed Forces
, a division of the Internal Security Forces (ISF), in the Mouseitbeh area of west Beirut on April 27, 2006. The announcement of his capture was made July 7, 2006 by FBI Assistant Director Mark J. Mershon.
Press reports on Tuesday, March 17, 2009, advised that he had been released on bail back in June, 2008.
Homeland Security chief Michael Chertoff said "It was never a concern that this would actually be executed ... We were, as I say, all over this."
Further, in 2003, Hammoud met with a Syrian man, who took him to Ain al-Hilweh, Lebanon's largest Palestinian refugee camp, to practice the use of weapons. They added that in 2005, Hammoud met with a "foreign man" who asked him to provide apartments and weapons to the mujahideen.
, was under Muslim control. From interviews with his mother, the family is reported to have migrated to Lebanon from Spain in the year 800.
Hammoud is said to be either a professor of economics or computer science at the Lebanese International University
. He studied finance and economics in Canada in the late 1990s for six years. He speaks English, French and German, in addition to Arabic.
His mother, Nabila Qotob (b. 1948), who lives in Beirut's upscale Clemenceau neighborhood, has denied her son's involvement with Al Qaeda. His mother says he drives a 1965 MG
.
Hammoud has two brothers, one is studying in Canada and another works in the United Arab Emirates. One brother's name is Ramsey (36).
Beirut
Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...
native, is an alleged Al Qaeda operative living in Lebanon who was charged with plotting a mission to blow up the PATH
Port Authority Trans-Hudson
PATH, derived from Port Authority Trans-Hudson, is a rapid transit railroad linking Manhattan, New York City with Newark, Harrison, Hoboken and Jersey City in metropolitan northern New Jersey...
train tunnels beneath the Hudson River between New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
and lower Manhattan, New York City
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
with a team of suicide bombers with backpack explosives. He was arrested by the Lebanese Armed Forces
Lebanese Armed Forces
The Lebanese Armed Forces or Forces Armées Libanaises in French, also known as the Lebanese Army according to its official Website The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) (Arabic: القوات المسلحة اللبنانية | Al-Quwwāt al-Musallaḥa al-Lubnāniyya) or Forces Armées Libanaises in French, also known as the...
, a division of the Internal Security Forces (ISF), in the Mouseitbeh area of west Beirut on April 27, 2006. The announcement of his capture was made July 7, 2006 by FBI Assistant Director Mark J. Mershon.
Press reports on Tuesday, March 17, 2009, advised that he had been released on bail back in June, 2008.
Hudson River bomb plot
Additionally, he was planning to travel to Pakistan for four months training and that the date for the attack was decided to be late in 2006.Homeland Security chief Michael Chertoff said "It was never a concern that this would actually be executed ... We were, as I say, all over this."
Further, in 2003, Hammoud met with a Syrian man, who took him to Ain al-Hilweh, Lebanon's largest Palestinian refugee camp, to practice the use of weapons. They added that in 2005, Hammoud met with a "foreign man" who asked him to provide apartments and weapons to the mujahideen.
Background
Hammoud's nom de guerre, Amir Andalousi, means "Spanish Prince," and refers to the time when Spain, or Al-AndalusAl-Andalus
Al-Andalus was the Arabic name given to a nation and territorial region also commonly referred to as Moorish Iberia. The name describes parts of the Iberian Peninsula and Septimania governed by Muslims , at various times in the period between 711 and 1492, although the territorial boundaries...
, was under Muslim control. From interviews with his mother, the family is reported to have migrated to Lebanon from Spain in the year 800.
Hammoud is said to be either a professor of economics or computer science at the Lebanese International University
Lebanese International University
The Lebanese International University is a private university established by the philanthropist and former Lebanese defense and education minister Abdul Rahim Mourad...
. He studied finance and economics in Canada in the late 1990s for six years. He speaks English, French and German, in addition to Arabic.
His mother, Nabila Qotob (b. 1948), who lives in Beirut's upscale Clemenceau neighborhood, has denied her son's involvement with Al Qaeda. His mother says he drives a 1965 MG
MG (car)
The MG Car Company is a former British sports car manufacturer founded in the 1920s by Cecil Kimber. Best known for its two-seat open sports cars, MG also produced saloons and coupés....
.
Hammoud has two brothers, one is studying in Canada and another works in the United Arab Emirates. One brother's name is Ramsey (36).
External links
- Lebanese arrest suspect in New York bomb plot; The Daily Star (Lebanon), July 8, 2006.