I Was In Federal Court Today And Witnessed Iraqi Al Qaeda In Bowling Green, Waad Ramadan Alwan, Plead Guilty To 23 Charges Of Trying To Kill Americans And Supply Weapons To Iraq Insurgents.

Iraqi admits trying to send weapons to al-Qaida

BOWLING GREEN, KY. — An Iraqi man who had claimed he was innocent of terrorism-related charges has done an abrupt about-face, pleading guilty Friday to trying to funnel weapons and cash to al-Qaida operatives in his home country.

Waad Ramadan Alwan, 30, appeared in U.S. District Court in Bowling Green to plead guilty to conspiring to attack American soldiers in Iraq and to use a weapon of mass destruction and attempting to provide material support to terrorists.

Alwan was arrested in May in Bowling Green and previously had pleaded not guilty to charges in a 23-count indictment that also named fellow Iraqi Mohanad Shareef Hammadi.

Alwan’s attorney declined to comment after the hearing.

U.S. Attorney David J. Hale said in a statement that Alwan “admitted to engaging in terrorist activities both here in the United States and in Iraq. He acknowledged he had built and placed numerous improvised explosive devices (IEDs) aimed at killing and injuring American soldiers in Iraq, and he admitted that he tried to send numerous weapons from Kentucky to Iraq to be used against American soldiers.”

Hale said the joint efforts of federal and local law enforcement had thwarted “the ongoing intentions of an experienced terrorist.”

“The guilty plea today sends a strong message to anyone who would attempt similar crimes that they will face the same determined law enforcement and prosecution efforts,” he said.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Alwan’s guilty plea “confirms that he was a combatant who was associated with enemy forces overseas. The military should have had custody of him to begin with for purposes of intelligence, detention and punishment.”

In a statement, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., praised the work of law enforcement officials in arresting Alwan and Hammadi and said the “incident underlines the need for a thorough review and re-examination of the process through which refugees are granted access to our country.”

“The grave offenses this man pleaded guilty of committing could have cost innumerable American lives,” he said.