Naser Jason Abdo
Encyclopedia
Naser Jason Abdo is a Muslim
US Army Private First Class
who is currently being held without bond for possession of an unregistered firearm and allegedly planning to attack a restaurant frequented by soldiers from Fort Hood.
and attended Richardson Terrace Elementary School, South Garland High School
and Berkner High School. His parents divorced when he was 3 and he spent most of his childhood with his father, Jamal Rateb Abdo, a Palestinian
with Jordan
ian citizenship who was sentenced to five years in prison and then deported back to Jordan after being convicted of soliciting a minor.
on his government-issued computer. At a June 15 hearing it was recommended that Abdo face court-martial. He had been AWOL since July 4 from Fort Campbell
, Kentucky
In an interview with Al-Jazeera TV which aired on August 21, 2010 (as translated by MEMRI), Nasser stated that "I don't believe I can involve myself in an army that wages war against Muslims. I don't believe I could sleep at night if I take part, in any way, in the killing of a Muslim."
Two anti-war
groups, Iraq Veterans Against the War
and Courage to Resist, supported Abdo's conscientious objector bid. In a statement for Iraq Veterans Against the War, Abdo wrote, "Only when the military and America can disassociate Muslims from terror can we move onto a brighter future of religious collaboration and dialogue that defines America and makes me proud to be an American." Upon hearing of Abdo's arrest, Courage to Resist, which had contributed to Abdo's legal fees in the conscientious objector case, said in a statement that it had removed Abdo's profile from its website.
Texas by buying an unusually large amount of smokeless gunpowder, three boxes of shotgun ammunition and a magazine for a pistol. A clerk notified the Killeen Police Department who, in turn, tracked Abdo to the America's Best Value Inn and Suites via the taxi that he had taken to make his purchase. Guns Galore was the same store that Nidal Hasan bought a pistol used in the Fort Hood shooting
s.
At the hotel room where Abdo was staying, three miles from Fort Hood's main gate, police found a handgun and the ingredients for an explosive device, including gunpowder, shrapnel and pressure cookers. Also present was an article entitled "Make a bomb in the kitchen of your Mom" from Inspire magazine, the English-language publication of Al Qaeda. According to Daniel Pipes
of The Washington Times
the "materials in Pfc. Abdo’s possession corresponded precisely to the “ingredients” listed in the Inspire magazine article on bomb-making." Abdo had also purchased a uniform with Fort Hood patches from a military surplus store.
Abdo is the third Muslim soldier since the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attack to be charged with terror-related offenses. In addition to Nidal Malik Hasan's attack on Fort Hood, Sgt. Hasan Karim Akbar killed two officers and wounded 14 other soldiers of the 101st Airborne in a grenade and shooting attack in Kuwait
at the start of the Iraq war. According to ABC News
, Abdo, like Nidal Hasan may have been inspired by Anwar al-Awlaki
, an American-born Islamic cleric who is among the leaders of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, based in Yemen
.
During the hearing Abdo shouted: "Nidal Hasan — Ft. Hood 2009" in reference to the Army major Nidal Malik Hasan
who is charged with killing 13 people at Fort Hood
. Hasan, like Abdo, opposed fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan because as against his Muslim beliefs. Abdo also invoked the name of Abeer Qassim al-Janabi, a 14 year old girl raped and murdered by United States Army soldiers in Iraq.
According to court papers Abdo "admitted that he planned to assemble two bombs in the hotel room using gun powder and shrapnel packed into pressure cookers" to explode at a restaurant popular with soldiers. A federal Judge
, after hearing testimony from the FBI, stated that Abdo could be indicted on additional charges.
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
US Army Private First Class
Private First Class
Private First Class is a military rank held by junior enlisted persons.- Singapore :The rank of Private First Class in the Singapore Armed Forces lies between the ranks of Private and Lance-Corporal . It is usually held by conscript soldiers midway through their national service term...
who is currently being held without bond for possession of an unregistered firearm and allegedly planning to attack a restaurant frequented by soldiers from Fort Hood.
Early life
Abdo grew up in Garland, TexasGarland, Texas
-Climate:* The average warmest month is July.* The highest recorded temperature was in 2000.* On average, the coolest month is January.* The lowest recorded temperature was in 1989.* The maximum average precipitation occurs in May....
and attended Richardson Terrace Elementary School, South Garland High School
South Garland High School
South Garland High School is a secondary school located in Garland, Texas. The school is part of the Garland Independent School District. The mascot for SGHS is the "Southern Colonel," and the school colors are red and Royal blue....
and Berkner High School. His parents divorced when he was 3 and he spent most of his childhood with his father, Jamal Rateb Abdo, a Palestinian
Palestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
with Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
ian citizenship who was sentenced to five years in prison and then deported back to Jordan after being convicted of soliciting a minor.
Army
Abdo joined the Army in March 2009 and had applied for conscientious objector status in June 2010 arguing that being a Muslim prevented him from serving in Afghanistan. His pending discharge was put on hold when the Army discovered the images of child pornographyChild pornography
Child pornography refers to images or films and, in some cases, writings depicting sexually explicit activities involving a child...
on his government-issued computer. At a June 15 hearing it was recommended that Abdo face court-martial. He had been AWOL since July 4 from Fort Campbell
Fort Campbell
Fort Campbell is a United States Army installation located astraddle the Kentucky-Tennessee border between Hopkinsville, Kentucky, and Clarksville, Tennessee...
, Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
In an interview with Al-Jazeera TV which aired on August 21, 2010 (as translated by MEMRI), Nasser stated that "I don't believe I can involve myself in an army that wages war against Muslims. I don't believe I could sleep at night if I take part, in any way, in the killing of a Muslim."
Two anti-war
Anti-war
An anti-war movement is a social movement, usually in opposition to a particular nation's decision to start or carry on an armed conflict, unconditional of a maybe-existing just cause. The term can also refer to pacifism, which is the opposition to all use of military force during conflicts. Many...
groups, Iraq Veterans Against the War
Iraq Veterans Against the War
Iraq Veterans Against the War is an advocacy group of active-duty United States military personnel, Iraq War veterans, Afghanistan War veterans, and other veterans who have served since the September 11, 2001 attacks who are opposed to the U.S. occupation of Iraq...
and Courage to Resist, supported Abdo's conscientious objector bid. In a statement for Iraq Veterans Against the War, Abdo wrote, "Only when the military and America can disassociate Muslims from terror can we move onto a brighter future of religious collaboration and dialogue that defines America and makes me proud to be an American." Upon hearing of Abdo's arrest, Courage to Resist, which had contributed to Abdo's legal fees in the conscientious objector case, said in a statement that it had removed Abdo's profile from its website.
Arrest
On July 27, 2011, Abdo raised the suspicion of the staff of "Guns Galore" in KilleenKilleen, Texas
Killeen is a city in Bell County, Texas, The United States. The population was 86,911 at the 2000 census. As of 2009, Killeen had 119,510 people. In 2010 Killeen's population shot to 127,921...
Texas by buying an unusually large amount of smokeless gunpowder, three boxes of shotgun ammunition and a magazine for a pistol. A clerk notified the Killeen Police Department who, in turn, tracked Abdo to the America's Best Value Inn and Suites via the taxi that he had taken to make his purchase. Guns Galore was the same store that Nidal Hasan bought a pistol used in the Fort Hood shooting
Fort Hood shooting
The Fort Hood shooting was a mass shooting that took place on November 5, 2009, at Fort Hood, the most populous U.S. military installation in the world, located just outside Killeen, Texas. In the course of the shooting, a single gunman killed 13 people and wounded 29 others...
s.
At the hotel room where Abdo was staying, three miles from Fort Hood's main gate, police found a handgun and the ingredients for an explosive device, including gunpowder, shrapnel and pressure cookers. Also present was an article entitled "Make a bomb in the kitchen of your Mom" from Inspire magazine, the English-language publication of Al Qaeda. According to Daniel Pipes
Daniel Pipes
Daniel Pipes is an American historian, writer, and political commentator. He is the founder and director of the Middle East Forum and its Campus Watch project, and editor of its Middle East Quarterly journal...
of The Washington Times
The Washington Times
The Washington Times is a daily broadsheet newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. It was founded in 1982 by Unification Church founder Sun Myung Moon, and until 2010 was owned by News World Communications, an international media conglomerate associated with the...
the "materials in Pfc. Abdo’s possession corresponded precisely to the “ingredients” listed in the Inspire magazine article on bomb-making." Abdo had also purchased a uniform with Fort Hood patches from a military surplus store.
Abdo is the third Muslim soldier since the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attack to be charged with terror-related offenses. In addition to Nidal Malik Hasan's attack on Fort Hood, Sgt. Hasan Karim Akbar killed two officers and wounded 14 other soldiers of the 101st Airborne in a grenade and shooting attack in Kuwait
Kuwait
The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
at the start of the Iraq war. According to ABC News
ABC News
ABC News is the news gathering and broadcasting division of American broadcast television network ABC, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company...
, Abdo, like Nidal Hasan may have been inspired by Anwar al-Awlaki
Anwar al-Awlaki
Anwar al-Awlaki was an American and Yemeni imam who was an engineer and educator by training. According to U.S. government officials, he was a senior talent recruiter and motivator who was involved with planning operations for the Islamist militant group al-Qaeda...
, an American-born Islamic cleric who is among the leaders of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, based in Yemen
Yemen
The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....
.
Court hearing
In a court hearing on July 29, 2011, Abdo was charged with possession of an unregistered destructive device and has yet to enter a plea. He was ordered held without bond.During the hearing Abdo shouted: "Nidal Hasan — Ft. Hood 2009" in reference to the Army major Nidal Malik Hasan
Nidal Malik Hasan
Nidal Malik Hasan, USA is a United States Army officer and sole suspect in the November 5, 2009, Fort Hood shooting, which occurred less than a month before he would have deployed to Afghanistan....
who is charged with killing 13 people at Fort Hood
Fort Hood shooting
The Fort Hood shooting was a mass shooting that took place on November 5, 2009, at Fort Hood, the most populous U.S. military installation in the world, located just outside Killeen, Texas. In the course of the shooting, a single gunman killed 13 people and wounded 29 others...
. Hasan, like Abdo, opposed fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan because as against his Muslim beliefs. Abdo also invoked the name of Abeer Qassim al-Janabi, a 14 year old girl raped and murdered by United States Army soldiers in Iraq.
According to court papers Abdo "admitted that he planned to assemble two bombs in the hotel room using gun powder and shrapnel packed into pressure cookers" to explode at a restaurant popular with soldiers. A federal Judge
Federal judge
Federal judges are judges appointed by a federal level of government as opposed to the state / provincial / local level.-Brazil:In Brazil, federal judges of first instance are chosen exclusively by public contest...
, after hearing testimony from the FBI, stated that Abdo could be indicted on additional charges.