Letter Asking Why FBI Ceased Investigation on Fort Hood Terrorist

After the terrorist attack at Fort Hood, I joined several colleagues in sending a letter to FBI Director Robert Mueller requesting clarification on reports that the FBI stopped investigating Nidal Malik Hasan despite his comments, postings, and contact with radical Islamist groups.

Dear Director Mueller:

We thank you for your hard work over the past several months in disrupting terrorist cells. However, it only takes one mistake to allow a terrorist cell to succeed in its plans to kill Americans. We would like to know why media reports state that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) stopped investigating Nidal Malik Hasan despite his comments, postings, and contact with radical Islamist groups. American soldiers paid the price for this negligence, and that is unacceptable.

It is now known that the shooter, Major Nidal Hasan, attempted to contact radical Islamists with ties to al-Qaeda. Intelligence agencies intercepted communications last year and this year between the military psychiatrist accused of shooting to death 13 people at Fort Hood, Texas, and a radical cleric in Yemen known for his incendiary anti-American teachings.

We also want to note that the attack at Fort Hood is not an isolated incident. Over the past several weeks we have seen law enforcement successfully disrupt terrorist cells inside the United States. The cases are not materially connected. However, they are all connected by a radical global ideology that is self-identified by its believers as jihadist, or “jihadiyya”. Examples of this are:

• In a September 24, 2009 FBI release titled “FBI Arrests Jordanian Citizen for Attempting to Bomb Skyscraper in Downtown Dallas,” the FBI stated, “Smadi made clear his intention to serve as a soldier for Usama Bin Laden and al-Qaeda, and to conduct violent jihad.”

• In a September 24, 2009 FBI release titled “Illinois Man Arrested in Plot to Bomb Courthouse and Murder Federal Employees,” the FBI stated, “…Finton expressed his desire to receive military training and to travel to Gaza or other overseas locations to become a jihadist fighter.”
• In a September 24, 2009 FBI release on the North Carolina terrorist cell lead by Daniel Boyd titled “Superseding Indictment in Boyd Matter Charges Defendants with Conspiring to Murder U.S. Military Personnel, Weapons Violations,” the FBI release stated, “According to the indictment, during the period from 1989 through 1992, Daniel Boyd traveled to Pakistan and Afghanistan where he received military-style training in terrorist training camps for the purpose of engaging in violent jihad.”
• In a September 24, 2009 FBI release titled “New York Terror Case- Indictment Announced,” the FBI states that Zazi told FBI investigators that he "attended courses at an al-Qaeda training facility" while in Pakistan.
• In a September 24, 2009 FBI release titled “Brooklyn Resident Indicted for Conspiracy to Commit Murder Overseas and Conspiracy to Provide Material Support to Terrorists,” the FBI states that, “According to the indictment and other documents filed by the government, in early January 2009, Kaziu devised a plan to travel abroad for the purpose of joining a radical foreign fighter group and to take up arms against perceived enemies of Islam.”

We can no longer ignore that this radical ideology exists inside the United States. As the above examples point out, this jihadist trend has continued and will continue until we begin to address it.

In addition to knowing why you stopped the investigation of Nidal Malik Hasan, we would like to know what you are doing to address the radical ideology so that we can prevent attacks from taking place. It poses a grave threat to our national security as well as the safety of Americans.

We also bring to your attention that mainstream, moderate Muslim organizations such as World Organization for Resource Development and Education (WORDE) are calling for the “marshalling of community resources for counter-radicalization programs in the mosque and working proactively with law enforcement to identify persons we believe post a threat to the security of Americans.” Are you working with groups like WORDE in this effort, or other local groups who do not have ties to radical Islamists? We would like to know who you are working with and what is being done.

We look forward to your response regarding the investigation of Nidal Malik Hasan and what actions are being taken to address this radical ideology, “jihadiyya,” so that we can prevent homegrown terrorism and protect the public.