America\u2019s homeland security amnesia never ceases to amaze. In the aftermath of the botched Times Square terror attack over the weekend, Pakistani-born bombing suspect Faisal Shahzad\u2019s U.S. citizenship status caused a bit of shock and awe. The Atlantic magazine writer Jeffrey Goldberg\u2019s response was typical: \u201cI am struck by the fact that he is a naturalized American citizen, not a recent or temporary visitor.\u201d Well, wake up and smell the deadly deception.<\/p>\n
Shahzad\u2019s path to American citizenship \u2014 he reportedly married an American woman, Huma Mian, in 2008 after spending a decade in the country on foreign student and employment visas \u2014 is a tried-and-true terror formula. Jihadists have been gaming the sham marriage racket with impunity for years. And immigration benefit fraud has provided invaluable cover and aid for U.S.-based Islamic plotters, including many other operatives planning attacks on New York City. As I\u2019ve reported previously:<\/p>\n
\u2014 El Sayyid A. Nosair wed Karen Ann Mills Sweeney to avoid deportation for overstaying his visa. He acquired U.S. citizenship, allowing him to remain in the country, and was later convicted for conspiracy in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing that claimed six lives.<\/p>\n
\u2014 Ali Mohamed became an American citizen after marrying a woman he met on a plane trip from Egypt to New York. Recently divorced, Linda Lee Sanchez wed Mohamed in Reno, Nev., after a six-week \u201ccourtship.\u201d Mohamed became a top aide to Osama bin Laden and was later convicted for his role in the 1998 United States embassy bombings in Africa that killed 12 Americans and more than 200 others.<\/p>\n
\u2014 Embassy bombing plotter Khalid Abu al Dahab obtained citizenship after marrying three different American women.<\/p>\n
\u2014 Embassy bombing plotter Wadih el Hage, Osama bin Laden\u2019s personal secretary, married April Ray in 1985 and became a naturalized citizen in 1989. Ray knew of her husband\u2019s employment with bin Laden, but like many of these women in bogus marriages, she pleaded ignorance about the nature of her husband\u2019s work. El Hage, she says, was a sweet man, and bin Laden \u201cwas a great boss.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
America’s homeland security amnesia never ceases to amaze. In the aftermath of the botched Times Square terror attack over the weekend, Pakistani-born bombing suspect Faisal Shahzad’s U.S.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1517,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9549","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n