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Hizballah, Hamas Feel Increased FBI Focus

(Washington Post) Wielding new powers granted by a six-month-old federal court decision, the FBI has greatly intensified decade-old investigations of alleged U.S. supporters of the Islamic Resistance Movement and Hizballah terrorist groups, according to government officials. The stepped-up investigations in at least two dozen U.S. cities were triggered by a November 2002 court ruling authorizing federal agents who pursue criminal prosecution of terrorism suspects to use decades worth of classified wiretaps and intelligence reports from foreign security agencies that previously had been off-limits. "It's a trove of information that's created enormous possibilities, a whole new world for us," said a senior U.S. counterterrorism official who works on criminal cases. "Before, we were playing with one hand tied behind our backs." The 50-count indictment in February of Florida college professor Sami Al-Arian on charges of conspiracy to commit murder via suicide attacks in Israel was the first based on information made available as a result of the new ruling.
2003-05-08 00:00:00
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