Faisal Shahzad

Shahzad is a naturalized U.S. citizen. He was born in Pakistan in either Kashmir, Karachi, or Pabbi (a village in Nowshera District east of Peshawar).[19][20][21] The village Mohib Banda (near Peshawar) is his ancestral home, which his father left before he was born.[22] Pakistani government officials said to Time that Shahzad is of Kashmiri descent.[1][2] Forbes reported that he is of Pashtun extraction, and The New York Times reported that he identified proudly with his tribal Pashtun heritage.[3][23][24] He is the youngest of four children. Time opined that his family's background in the northwest meant that he likely spoke Pashto, a rare asset in the training camps compared to other Western volunteers.[25] Faiz Ahmed, a former mayor in Mohib Banda – his ancestral home – and a close friend of his father, said in this regard in an interview with National Public Radio: "This is a tragedy for me and every Pakistani, every Pashtun."[26] Shahzad comes from a wealthy, well-educated family in northwest Pakistan.[7] His father, Baharul Haq, lives in a suburb of Peshawar. He was a senior official in the Pakistan Air Force, holding the rank of Air Vice-Marshal (the equivalent of a two-star general) before leaving the air force in 1992,[7][27] and is a deputy director general of the Civil Aviation Authority of Pakistan.[28][29][30] He had begun as a common airman, but became a fighter pilot excelling in aerobatics, and was posted in England and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.[3] Shahzad attended primary school in Saudi Arabia, according to documents found outside his Shelton home, and then attended several schools in Pakistan.[5] In high school, he received Ds in English composition and microeconomics.[3] He then enrolled in Greenwich University, a Karachi business school, where he was a mediocre student.[3] He had servants, chaffeurs, and armed guards.[3] He has a Pakistani identification card issued by the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) stating that he is a resident of Karachi.[7] Kifayat Ali, a man who said he is a cousin of Shahzad's father, insisted that Shahzad's family had no political affiliations, adding that the arrest appeared as a "conspiracy so that the [Americans] can bomb more Pashtuns," and "He was never linked to any political or religious party [in Pakistan]."[31] Shahzad studied for five semesters in 1997 and 1998 at the now-defunct Southeastern University in Washington, D.C., where he took mostly business classes, receiving several Cs and Ds, an F in basic statistics, and a grade point average of 2.78.[32] In December 1998 he was granted an F-1 student visa.[33] In 1999 he was placed on a US Customs (later merged into DHS) travel lookout list called the "Traveler Enforcement Compliance System."[34] In 2000 he transferred to the University of Bridgeport, where more than a third of the students were foreign students.[3] Shahzad's former teachers at the University of Bridgeport said he appeared to be quiet and unremarkable. On weekends, he would go to Bengali-theme nightclubs in New York City. A classmate remembered him watching new footage of the planes hitting the Twin Towers in the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and saying: "They had it coming."[3] He received a B.A. in computer applications and information systems,[3][33] with his parents attending his graduation on May 13, 2002.[35] Just before graduation, in April 2002, he was granted an H1-B visa for skilled workers.[33] He remained in the U.S. for three years on that visa, earning an M.B.A at the University of Bridgeport in the summer of 2005.[33] Shahzad worked as a junior financial analyst in the accounting department at the Elizabeth Arden cosmetics company in Stamford, Connecticut, while he was still working on his master's degree from January 2002 and until June 15, 2006, when he resigned to work elsewhere.[35] He complained to his friends during his time working for them that they never raised his salary above $50,000.[3] On December 24, 2004, in an arranged marriage in Peshawar, Pakistan, he married Huma Asif Mian, a Pashtun Colorado-born U.S. citizen who had just graduated from the University of Colorado at Boulder with a degree in Accounting.[3][36][37][38][5][39] She and her Pakistani-born parents had lived in Qatar and Colorado; her parents now live in Saudi Arabia.[38] A neighbor recalled Shahzad visited the family only once before she joined him in Connecticut. On her social networking page, Shahzad's wife lists her languages as English, Pashto, Urdu, and French, her religion as Muslim and her political view as "nonpolitical."[31] Her father, Mohammad Asif Mian, is a petroleum engineering expert who has written a number of books and technical manuals, including a best-selling book on Project Economics and Decision Analysis, worked for companies such as Saudi Aramco and Qatar General Petroleum, and has two master's degrees from Colorado School of Mines.[37][40] After Shahzad was arrested, his father-in-law said: "to go to this extreme, this is unbelievable. He has lovely children. Two really lovely children. As a father I would not be able to afford to lose my children."[3] He bought a black Mercedes in 2002, as well as a condominium in Norwalk, Connecticut, for $205,000 which he sold in May 2004 to computer consultant George LaMonica for a $56,000 profit.[3][3] LaMonica was interviewed afterward by investigators from the national Joint Terrorism Task Force, regarding details of the transactions and information about Shahzad.[41] Shahzad was granted a permanent residence status (a "green card") in January 2006.[20] He bought a new single-family three-bedroom home in Shelton, Connecticut, just outside Bridgeport in 2006, at which the family lived.[3][35][42] From mid-June 2006 to June 2009, Shahzad worked as a junior financial analyst, a position he told a friend paid $70,000, for Affinion Group, an affinity marketing and consulting business[43] then located at 100 Connecticut Avenue, Norwalk, Connecticut.[35] He was granted U.S. citizenship on April 17, 2009, due to his marriage to his wife.[7][39] A few weeks later, he abruptly quit his job and stopped making payments on his house, defaulting on the $218,400 mortgage.[35] The New York Times observed: "while in recent years Mr. Shahzad struggled to pay his bills, it is unclear that his financial hardship played a significant role in his radicalization. He still owned his home and held a full-time job when he began signaling to friends that he wanted to leave the United States."[3] His marriage became strained in 2009, as he pressured his wife to wear a hijab, and insisted that the family return to Pakistan while he searched for a job in the Middle East.[3] On June 2, he telephoned his wife from JFK Airport, saying he was leaving for Pakistan, and that it was up to her choice whether to follow him.[3] She refused, and instead she and their two children (a girl named Alisbheba, and a boy) moved to Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, where her parents were living.[3] He then defaulted on his mortgage, and was sued by the bank in September 2009 as it foreclosed on his home.[20][44] The New York Times reported that on February 25, 2006, Shahzad sent a long e-mail message to a number of friends.[3] Writing that he understood that Islam forbids killing innocents, he asked those who insisted only on "peaceful protest": Can you tell me a way to save the oppressed? And a way to fight back when rockets are fired at us and Muslim blood flows? Everyone knows how the Muslim country bows down to pressure from west. Everyone knows the kind of humiliation we are faced with around the globe.[3] That year he began to become more religious.[3] He began to pray five times a day, at mosques in Stamford, Norwalk, and Bridgeport.[3] In 2008, while in Pakistan, he asked his father for permission to fight in Afghanistan, but his father denied his request.[3] In April 2009 he e-mailed friends his criticism of the views of a moderate Pakistani politician, writing that the politician had "bought into the Western jargon" of calling the mujahedeen "extremist," and urging his friends to find "a proper Sheikh to understand the Quran."[3] Asked which sheikhs he followed, he said: "My sheikhs are in the field."[3] He also wrote: "Allah commands about fighting for Islam."[3] [edit]Attempted bombing of Times Square

Main article: 2010 Times Square car bomb attempt [edit]Reported preparations On July 3, 2009, he reportedly traveled to Pakistan and is believed to have visited Peshawar, a gateway to the militant-occupied tribal regions of Pakistan and stayed there from July 7 to July 22.[45] While in Pakistan, he said he trained at a terrorist training camp in what was believed to be Waziristan, according to law enforcement officials.[46] Shahzad's most recent stay in Pakistan lasted for five months; he returned to the U.S. on February 3, 2010, on an Emirates flight from Dubai.[7][14][45][47] Shahzad was believed to have bought the 1993 Nissan Pathfinder which was used in the car bomb attempt within three weeks prior to the incident. The vehicle was purchased through an ad on Craigslist, for $1,300 which Shahzad reportedly paid a Connecticut woman for in $100 bills.[48] The money was paid and the car turned over at a Connecticut shopping center, without any formal paperwork being exchanged.[42][49] [edit]Arrest and charges Shahzad was arrested approximately 53 hours after the incident,[11] at 11:45 p.m. EDT on May 3, 2010, by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers[12][13][50]). He was taken into custody at John F. Kennedy International Airport, as he sat on board Emirate Airlines Flight 202 to Dubai before the plane had moved from the gate.[7][14][15][42] His final destination was to have been Islamabad, Pakistan.[7] Lapses in security allowed Shahzad to board the plane. He had been placed on the no-fly list on Monday, May 3 at 12:30 p.m. when investigators became more certain he was a suspect.[51] Investigators then lost track of Shahzad before he drove to the airport on the evening of May 3, and did not know he was planning to leave the country.[51] The Emirates airline did not check the no-fly list for added names at 6:30 p.m. when Shahzad made a reservation, or at 7:35 p.m. when he purchased the ticket at JFK airport with cash.[51] Shahzad was later allowed to board the plane. However, a routine post boarding check at 11:00 p.m. revealed that Shahzad was on the no-fly list.[51] Within minutes, agents boarded the plane which was still at the gate and arrested him.[51] Shortly after the arrest, Attorney General Holder said "Based on what we know so far, it is clear that this was a terrorist plot aimed at murdering Americans in one of the busiest places in our country".[15] Holder later said that Shahzad had admitted involvement in the incident, and that Shahzad was providing useful information.[52][53] According to Deputy FBI Director John Pistole, Shahzad was initially interrogated under the public safety exception to the Miranda rule, cooperated with authorities, and was later read his Miranda rights. He continued to cooperate and provide information after he was read the rights.[54] The FBI and NYPD searched Shahzad's Bridgeport, Connecticut home on May 4, at Sheridan Street and Boston Avenue, removing filled plastic bags.[7] Materials related to the bomb were found in his apartment, including boxes that had contained the alarm clocks, and his car at the airport had a 9mm Kel-Tec SUB-2000 carbine with five full magazines of ammunition, according to law enforcement officials.[45][48] The complaint filed in federal court on May 4, 2010[55] charges Shahzad with five counts of terrorism-related crimes: 1) Attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction, 2) Attempting to kill and maim people in the U.S., 3) Using and carrying a destructive device, 4) Transporting an explosive device, and, 5) Attempting to damage building, vehicles, and other property.[7][8] If he is convicted on[vague] these charges, he faces up to life in prison.[7] On May 9, Attorney General Eric Holder announced pending Obama Administration Miranda-warning legislation in the context of the Shahzad case.[56] On June 21, Shahzad pleaded guilty to all the charges against him.[57] As of June 2010, Shahzad, Federal Bureau of Prisons #63510-054, is being held at the Metropolitan Correctional Center, New York City.[58]

According to the Wall Street Journal, Shahzad received bomb-making training from the Pakistani Taliban.[60] The Pakistani Taliban are made up overwhelmingly of Pashtun tribesmen.[61][62] According to CBS News, Shahzad has been on the Department of Homeland Security travel lookout list since 1999 because he has been bringing in large amounts of cash (approximately $80,000) into the United States.[63] United States Attorney General Eric Holder stated "the Pakistani Taliban was behind the attack. We know that they helped facilitate it. We know that they probably helped finance it and that he was working at their direction".[64]

Faisal Shahzad (*30.06.1979in Pakistan) bekannte sich am 21.06.2010 vor der Richterin Miriam Cedarbaum der versuchten Zündung einer selbstgebauten Autobombe am 1.05.2010 am New Yorker Times Square für schuldig. Nach der Fehlzündung begann das Auto zu qualmen; ein Straßenverkäufer meldete das qualmende Auto; eine Großfahndung führte nach zwei Tagen zum Ziel, als Shahzad an Bord eines starbereiten Flugzeugs nach Dubai festgenommen wurde.

Leben

Das jüngste von vier Kindern eines pakistanischen Luftwaffenoffiziers war mit 18 Jahren in die USA gekommen, hatte sechs Jahre lang in Buchhaltung und Finanzabteilung eines Kosmetikunternehmens gearbeitet und für sich und seine Familie (mit zwei kleinen Kindern) ein Haus in Connecticut gekauft.

Vorbereitung

Im Juni 2009 flog er nach Pakistan, um sich der Tehrik-e-Taliban anzuschließen. Er kontaktierte den (noch 2009 bei einem Drohnenangriff getöteten) Mehsud, knüpfte per Internet Kontakt zu Anwar al-Awlaki (den er später als Inspirationsquelle für seinen Anschlag nannte), absolvierte eine Sprengstoffausbildung und erhielt finanzielle Unterstützung.

Vor Gericht

Schuldbekenntnis

Vor Gericht zeigte Shahzad ungewöhnliches Verhalten. Vor dem Prozess hatte er keine Absprache mit der Anklage getroffen, also nicht auf einen Deal hingearbeitet. Offenbar ging es ihm nicht um Verständnis oder Milde. Als die Richterin ihn auf die Konsequenzen eines Schuldbekenntnisses aufmerksam machte - nämlich lebenslange Freiheitsstrafe - erklärte er:

"Ich will mich schuldig bekennen, und ich werde mich hundert Mal schuldig bekennen. Denn bis zu der Stunde, da die Amerikaner ihre Truppen aus dem Irak und aus Afghanistan abziehen, bis sie ihre Drohnenangriffe in Somalia, im Jemen und in Pakistan einstellen, bis sie nicht länger muslimischen Boden besetzt halten, bis sie aufhören, Muslime zu töten, werden wir Amerika angreifen. Und dazu bekenne ich mich schuldig" (Rüb 2010).

Rechtfertigung

Auf die weitere Frage, warum er denn selbst Frauen und Kinder habe töten wollen, antwortete Shahzad: "

"Sie greifen mit ihren Drohnen Frauen und Kinder in Afghanistan an. Was ich getan habe, ist meiner Ansicht nach kein Verbrechen. Ich weiß, dass es gegen die Gesetze der Vereinigten Staaten verstößt, aber mich interessieren die Gesetze der Vereinigten Staaten nicht. Ich betrachte mich als Mudschahid, als muslimischen Soldaten. Amerika und die Nato haben muslimisches Land angegriffen. Dies ist ein Krieg, und ich nehme daran teil."

Koinzidenz

Mit 6:3 Stimmen - darunter derjenigen des liberalen Richters John Paul Stevens - entschied am Tag, an dem Shahzad sein Schuldbekenntnis abgab, der Supreme Court, dass ein Anti-Terror-Gesetz verfassungsgemäß sei, das auch zivile Hilfeleistungen wie z.B. juristische Aufklärung über die Rechte von Angeklagten oder Seminare zur friedlichen Konfliktlösung als "materielle Unterstützung" einer terroristischen Organisation wertet.

Quellen

• Rüb, Matthias (2010) Geständnis als Schlachtruf. Der Terrorist vom Times Square erklärt den Krieg. FAZ 23.06.2010: 3.