In another twist in the U.S. war on terrorism, prosecutors in Oregon are expanding an investigation of the “Portland Six,” charging a local businessman with conspiracy to levy war against the United States. The Los Angeles Times reports that Maher “Mike” Hawash, a former Intel software engineer who has been held for more than a month on a material witness warrant, has been charged with two counts of illegally attempting to provide material support to the Taliban and Al Qaeda terrorist organizations.
Federal prosecutors say that Hawash and other suspects “decided after the Sept. 11 attacks to fight a jihad.” The Times says the trial “promises to be a showdown between prosecutors seeking to show how far some Americans were willing to go to retaliate against the Bush administration’s war on terrorism and defense lawyers who cite the case as an example of a reckless Justice Department intent on snaring innocent citizens.”
Link: http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-terror29apr29233418,1,5121111.story?coll=