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The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia accused a figurehead of the Islamic State of Iraq and a former ISIS fighter on Saturday with a plot to provide material support resulting in the death of ISIS, a designated terrorist organization.
Mohammed Khalifa, also known as Abu Ridwan Al-Kanadi or Abu Muthanna Al-Muhajir, is a Canadian citizen of Saudi origin who was captured abroad by the Syrian Democratic Forces and recently transferred to the FBI custody, at which point he was brought to the Eastern District of Virginia.
In 2013, Khalifa traveled to Syria with the intention of becoming a foreign fighter and joining ISIS. Khalifa reportedly joined the group around November 2013. In early 2014, he was recruited to join ISIS’s media office due to his language skills as an English and Arabic speaker.
The complaint claims:
Khalifa played an important role in the production and dissemination of ISIS propaganda on several media platforms targeting Western audiences… Khalifa admitted to FBI agents that he narrated and translated al-Hayat videos “Flames of War” and “Flames of War 2”. In addition, Khalifa admitted to assisting in the translation and narration of approximately 15 ISIS videos, including, but not limited to, “The Return of the Golden Dinar,” which was produced by al-Hayat, videos from the series “Inside the Khalifah”, which were also produced by al-Hayat, and unidentified videos and propaganda produced and disseminated by al-Furqan and al-Hayat.
According to Raj Parekh, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, through Khalifa’s role in translating, narrating, and promoting ISIS online propaganda, Khalifa encouraged potential recruits to join the ISIS, encouraged the perpetration of violent acts on behalf of ISIS and glorified the state Islam and its fighters.
If convicted, Khalifa faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account US sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.
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