Two Somali refugees have been arrested according to the Department of Justice as they attempted to join the Islamic State in Egypt. The two have seen been indicted and identified as Ahmed Mahad Mohamed and Abdi Yemani Hussein.
According to the criminal complaint, the defendants had been in communication with an FBI undercover employee whom they believed was a supporter of ISIS ideology.
Moreover the two were revealed to be planning attacks in the US in the event they were unable to travel to join the terror organization.
FBI agents arrested Mohamed and Hussein after they checked in for their flight at the Tucson International Airport in Arizona.
Refugees from Somali have proven to be a hot bed for ISIS recruitment. While this case took place in Arizona, the larger Somali community based in Minnesota has produced dozens of terrorists for ISIS, Al Qaeda and al Shabaab
Refugees especially those of Somali origin in the US tend to gravitate towards joining various terror organizations because of several reasons:
- They tend to feel profiled by the authorities mainly because of where they come from, being Muslim as well as the neighborhoods they live in the US.
- Homesick- most of them being so far away from family and friends and in a new country, they seek out organizations and communities to belong to and in most cases the jihadi online platform tend and seem to offer the same.
- Additionally, some may have been members of the al Shabaab and as such they are already radicalized as such seeking out other groups to fight for
