Deleted:Tarek Mehanna
| The below content is licensed according to Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License contrary to the public domain logo at the foot of the page. It originally appeared on http://en.wikipedia.org. The original article might still be accessible here. You may be able to find a list of the article's previous contributors on the talk page. |
Tarek Mehanna is an American pharmacist convicted of conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists for translating and posting statements on the internet for Al-Qaeda and lying to authorities.
Upbringing
Mehanna was born in Pennsylvania[1] and grew up in Sudbury, Massachusetts, a small town near Boston. His parents emigrated to the United States from Egypt in 1980.[2]
Involvement with Al-Qaeda
In 2004, Mehanna spent two weeks in Yemen, where prosecutors proved he tried but failed to seek out training in a militant training camp, with the aim of going to Iraq fighting with Iraqis against the US-led invasion and occupation. When he returned to the U.S., Mehanna began to translate and post online materials described by prosecutors as Al Qaeda propaganda.[3]Mehanna has said that he supports the right of Muslims to defend themselves.[4] His lawyers argued that his internet activities were protected under the U.S. First Amendment.[5]
US Attorney Carmen Ortiz led the prosecution of Mehanna. In April 2012, Mehanna was sentenced in federal court in Boston on four terrorism-related charges and three others related to lying to FBI and other U.S. federal officials. Before his sentence was determined, he made a statement described by journalists as "eloquent,"[4] and "passionate,"[6] the text of which was afterwards widely circulated online.[7][8]
Mehanna has appealed his case to the First Circuit Court of Appeals;[9] oral argument was held on July 30, 2013 in Boston.[10] At oral argument, Mehanna's side was argued by P. Sabin Willett, and the United States was represented by Liza Collery of the Department of Justice.[11]
Following Mehanna's sentencing, the ACLU released a statement saying that the suppression of unpopular ideas is contrary to American values, and that the verdict undermines the First Amendment.[12] Specifically, it stated, "Under the government's theory of the case, ordinary people--including writers and journalists, academic researchers, translators, and even ordinary web surfers--could be prosecuted for researching or translating controversial and unpopular ideas."
See also
References
| 40x40px | Wikisource has original text related to this article: |
- ↑ Lovering, Daniel (12 April 2012). "Massachusetts man convicted of aiding al Qaeda to be sentenced". Reuters U.S. Edition. http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/04/12/us-usa-security-mehanna-idUSBRE83B0RE20120412. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
- ↑ "US man gets 17 years prison on terror charges". Agence France Presse. 13 April 2012. http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5i4ZtgKNlJkGSgh30c4G20VbUs6eQ?docId=CNG.d14710124aa663bbefb607c73e872293.301. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
- ↑ Crimaldi, Laura (12 April 2012). "US man sentenced in plot to help al-Qaida". The Daily Star (Lebanon). http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/International/2012/Apr-12/170089-us-man-sentenced-in-plot-to-help-al-qaida.ashx#axzz1sHfpJRr4. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Caputi, Ross (16 April 2012). "Tarek Mehanna: punished for speaking truth to power". The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2012/apr/16/tarek-mehanna-punished-speaking-truth. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
- ↑ Ariosto, David (12 April 2012). "Man gets 17½-year prison term in Massachusetts terror case". CNN. http://www.cnn.com/2012/04/12/justice/massachusetts-terror-conviction/. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
- ↑ Holmes, Rick (16 April 2012). "RICK HOLMES: Incapacitating Tarek Mehanna". Taunton Daily Gazette. http://www.tauntongazette.com/news/x1221872996/RICK-HOLMES-Incapacitating-Tarek-Mehanna. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
- ↑ Greenwald, Glenn (13 April 2012). "The real criminals in the Tarek Mehanna case". Salon magazine. http://www.salon.com/2012/04/13/the_real_criminals_in_the_tarek_mehanna_case/singleton/. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
- ↑ Valencia, Milton J. (13 April 2012). "Mehanna gets more than 17 years in jail". The Boston Globe. http://articles.boston.com/2012-04-13/metro/31328842_1_terrorism-charges-free-speech-courtroom. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
- ↑ United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts (April 13, 2013). "USA v. Mehanna et al". Archived from the original on July 3, 2013. http://archive.org/download/gov.uscourts.mad.119881/gov.uscourts.mad.119881.docket.html. Retrieved July 3, 2013. "#433: NOTICE OF APPEAL by Tarek Mehanna in re 432 Judgment"
- ↑ United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit (June 18, 2013). "US v. Mehanna". Archived from the original on July 3, 2013. http://archive.org/download/gov.uscourts.ca1.12-1461/gov.uscourts.ca1.12-1461.docket.html. Retrieved July 3, 2013. ""CASE calendared: Tuesday, 07/30/2013 AM Boston, MA Panel Courtroom.""
- ↑ United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit (June 19, 2013). "US v. Mehanna". Archived from the original on July 3, 2013. http://archive.org/download/gov.uscourts.ca1.12-1461/gov.uscourts.ca1.12-1461.docket.html. "DESIGNATION of attorney presenting oral argument filed by Attorney Peter Sabin Willett for Appellant Tarek Mehanna"
- ↑ "Mehanna Verdict Compromises First Amendment, Undermines National Security". American Civil Liberties Union. http://www.aclu.org/free-speech/mehanna-verdict-compromises-first-amendment-undermines-national-security. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
