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Articles by Matthew Barakat

Legal

Virginia man charged in FBI sting with supporting Islamic State goes on trial

December 9, 2024 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A Virginia man accused of funneling tens of thousands of dollars to the Islamic State group was a lonely man looking for a wife and relentlessly targeted by FBI sting operations, a defense lawyer told jurors Monday, including one undercover operative […]

Legal

Some convictions overturned in terrorism case against Muslim scholar from Virginia

July 19, 2024 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A judge has overturned a conviction carrying a life sentence for an Islamic scholar from Virginia who was found guilty of soliciting treason after the Sept. 11 attacks for encouraging followers to fight against the U.S. in Afghanistan. The ruling issued […]

Legal

Appeals court upholds conviction of British national linked to Islamic State

June 7, 2024 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A federal appeals court upheld the conviction Friday of a British national for his role in a hostage-taking scheme by the Islamic State group that took roughly two dozen Westerners captive a decade ago. El Shafee Elsheikh was convicted and sentenced […]

Legal

Prosecutors reveal link between terror defendant in Virginia and Islamic State ’empress’ from Kansas

May 10, 2023 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A northern Virginia man arrested on terrorism charges has a husband-wife relationship with another American who was dubbed by authorities as an “empress of ISIS” for her work to establish an all-female battalion of the Islamic State, prosecutors said Wednesday. Mohammed […]

Legal

Va. man pleads to terror charge after doing time in Pakistan

April 26, 2023 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A northern Virginia man who traveled to Pakistan with four friends nearly 15 years ago seeking to engage in holy war pleaded guilty Wednesday to a terrorism charge, but he is likely to receive only a 1-day jail sentence. The guilty […]

Legal

Terror convict back in prison after meetings with Lindh

April 4, 2023 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A northern Virginia man convicted on terrorism charges as a teenager has been sent back to prison for a year after violating conditions of his release by meeting with convicted Taliban supporter John Walker Lindh and others linked to terrorism. Prosecutors […]

Legal

Virginians face terrorism charges years after Pakistan trial

February 14, 2023 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) It was almost 15 years ago when five young men from northern Virginia left the U.S. to pursue dreams of jihad in Afghanistan, only to find themselves under arrest in Pakistan when their farewell video prompted family members to contact the […]

Law Enforcement

FBI: ‘American Taliban’ Lindh meets with released extremist

January 26, 2023 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A northern Virginia man convicted nearly a decade ago of supporting the Islamic State group as a teenager has now been accused of violating his terms of release by meeting with convicted Taliban supporter John Walker Lindh. According to court documents, […]

Children & Teens

Family details horrific abuse at hands of female ISIS leader

October 24, 2022 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A Kansas native convicted of leading an all-female battalion of the Islamic State group had a long history of monstrous behavior that included sexual and physical abuse of her own children, family members said in court filings. Prosecutors cited the abuse […]

Legal

Dutch mom gets 3 years in US for supporting Somali militants

August 1, 2022 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A Dutch woman was sentenced to three years in prison Monday for donating several hundred dollars to a group that supported the militant group al-Shabab in Somalia. The [sentence] imposed on Farhia Hassan, 38, was far less than the 8-year sentence […]

Legal

American who joined Islamic State gets prison term reduced

June 28, 2022 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) The first American to be convicted in a U.S. jury trial of joining the Islamic State had his prison term reduced Tuesday from 20 years to 14 years after an appeals court ordered a new sentencing hearing. Mohamad Khweis was convicted […]

Legal

Brit convicted as ‘Beatle’ in Islamic State beheadings trial

April 14, 2022 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A jury convicted a British national Thursday for his role in an Islamic State group hostage-taking scheme that took roughly two dozen Westerners captive a decade ago, resulting in the deaths of four Americans, three of whom were beheaded. In convicting […]

Legal

Surviving hostage relates ordeal in Islamic State captivity

March 31, 2022 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) Federico Motka’s abductors greeted him in English after he and his colleagues were kidnapped near a refugee camp on the Turkish border: “Welcome to Syria, you mutt.” For the Italian aid worker, it was the beginning of 14 months of brutality […]

Legal

Prosecutor: Brit’s brutality uncommon even for Islamic State

March 30, 2022 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) El Shafee Elsheikh was not a typical Islamic State foot soldier — he was a senior leader who took particular pleasure in mistreating the hostages he held captive, prosecutors said Wednesday in opening statements of Elsheikh’s terrorism trial. Elsheikh, a British […]

Legal

Jury selection begins in terror trial of British national

March 29, 2022 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) Jury selection began Tuesday in the trial of a British national charged with taking a leading role in a scheme by the Islamic State group to take Americans and others as hostages for ransom, resulting in the deaths and beheadings of […]

Legal

Defense lawyers seek to restrict testimony from ISIS ‘slave’

March 2, 2022 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) Defense lawyers for a British national facing trial later this month for helping the Islamic State group torture and behead American hostages are seeking to block testimony from a Kurdish girl held as a slave by the group. The girl, identified […]

Legal

Family wants no contact with woman facing terrorism charge

January 31, 2022 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) The family of a Kansas woman charged with joining the Islamic State group and leading an all-female battalion says they want nothing to do with her, a prosecutor said Monday. Allison Ekren, 42, made an initial appearance on Monday afternoon in […]

Legal

Feds: Kansas woman led all-female Islamic State battalion

January 29, 2022 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A woman who once lived in Kansas has been arrested after federal prosecutors charged her with joining the Islamic State group and leading an all-female battalion of AK-47-wielding militants. The U.S. attorney in Alexandria, Virginia, announced Saturday that Allison Fluke-Ekren, 42, […]

Legal

Dutch woman brought to Virginia to face terrorism charge

October 29, 2021 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A Dutch woman charged seven years ago with raising money for the Somali terrorist group al-Shabab has been extradited to the U.S. to face trial. Farhia Hassan, 38, made an initial appearance Friday in U.S. District Court in Alexandria after being […]

Legal

British national pleads guilty to role in terror beheadings

September 2, 2021 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A British national admitted Thursday evening in a federal courtroom near the nation’s capital that he played a leadership role in an Islamic State scheme to torture, hold for ransom and eventually behead American hostages. Alexanda [Amon] Kotey, 37, pleaded guilty […]

Legal

Brit charged in terror beheadings scheduled to plead guilty

August 31, 2021 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) One of two British nationals charged with joining the Islamic State group and conspiring to torture and behead American and European hostages in Syria is scheduled to plead guilty to criminal charges. Federal court records show a change of plea hearing […]

Government & Politics

Sanctions on Iran block mosque from claiming religious tiles

August 10, 2021 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A northern Virginia mosque is asking the Biden administration to release a set of religious tiles that were confiscated at Dulles International Airport after they were deemed to violate sanctions on Iran. At a news conference Tuesday at the Manassas Mosque, […]

Government & Politics

Appeals court upholds constitutionality of terror watchlist

March 30, 2021 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A federal appeals court on Tuesday overturned a challenge to the constitutionality of the government’s terrorist watchlist, ruling that the government deserves wide latitude in establishing programs designed to protect national security. A group of two dozen Muslim plaintiffs sued in […]

Government & Politics

Appeals court weighs constitutionality of terror watchlist

January 26, 2021 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A panel of federal appellate judges expressed concerns about ordering wholesale changes to a government watchlist of roughly 1 million individuals labeled as “known or suspected terrorists,” despite a lower court finding that the list was constitutionally flawed. The 4th U.S. […]

Clothing

School board member sues police after being pepper-sprayed

January 12, 2021 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A Muslim school board member from northern Virginia has filed a federal lawsuit alleging her civil rights were violated after she was pepper-sprayed during a traffic stop and then photographed without her hijab following her arrest. Abrar Omeish, who was elected […]

Legal

Brits accused in beheading of hostages plead not guilty

October 9, 2020 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) Two British men charged with helping the Islamic State group carry out executions and ransom negotiations for Western hostages pleaded not guilty Friday in a federal court. El Shafee Elsheikh and Alexanda Kotey are identified by authorities as two of four […]

Legal

US charges British IS members in deaths of American hostages

October 7, 2020 Eric Tucker and Matthew Barakat  

(AP) Two Islamic State militants from Britain were brought to the United States on Wednesday to face charges in a gruesome campaign of torture, beheadings and other acts of violence against four Americans and others captured and held hostage in Syria. El […]

Government & Politics

Judge allows challenge to terrorist watchlist to move ahead

July 20, 2020 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A federal judge in Maryland is allowing dozens of Muslim plaintiffs to move ahead with a lawsuit against Attorney General William Barr and other federal officials challenging the constitutionality of the government’s watchlist of people identified as “known or suspected terrorists.” […]

Legal

Sept. 11 convict now says he renounces terrorism, bin Laden

May 20, 2020 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) The only man ever convicted in a U.S. court for a role in the Sept. 11 attacks now says he is renouncing terrorism, al-Qaida and the Islamic State. Zacarias Moussaoui is serving a life sentence at a federal prison in Colorado […]

Government & Politics

Judge orders government to make changes to terror watchlist

December 27, 2019 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A federal judge is ordering the government to make changes to its watchlist of more than 1 million people whose inclusion marks them as known or suspected terrorists, but for now he’s giving the government latitude to propose the changes as […]

Clothing

Virginia woman sues, says prayer break request cost her job

September 25, 2019 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A northern Virginia woman is suing a company that she says refused to hire her after she requested two five-minute breaks to pray during her work shift. Shahin Indorewala, 26, of Woodbridge says her job interview with Falls Church-based Fast Trak […]

Christians

Virginia jail ends ‘God Pod’ after Muslim inmates sue

September 20, 2019 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A Virginia jail has ended a program which inmates dubbed the “God Pod” after a lawsuit alleged the program provided favorable treatment to Christians and discriminated against Muslims. Court documents show the Riverside Regional Jail south of Richmond ended the program […]

Government & Politics

US judge: Terror watchlist violates constitutional rights

September 4, 2019 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) The government’s watchlist of more than 1 million people identified as “known or suspected terrorists” violates the constitutional rights of those placed on it, a federal judge ruled Wednesday. The ruling from U.S. District Judge Anthony Trenga grants summary judgment to […]

Legal

Islamic scholar’s terror convictions reviewed in Virginia

June 25, 2019 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A judge is considering tossing out parts of a 10-count conviction against an Islamic scholar serving life in prison for persuading some of his followers to travel overseas after the Sept. 11 attacks and try to join the Taliban. The review […]

Law Enforcement

Ex-police officer again gets 15 years on terror conviction

June 21, 2019 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A former police officer who tried to help the Islamic State by purchasing $245 in gift cards will still serve 15 years in prison, even though some of his convictions were tossed out on appeal. Nicholas Young of Fairfax, Virginia, was […]

Government & Politics

American who joined the Taliban is released from prison

May 23, 2019 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) John Walker Lindh, the Californian who took up arms for the Taliban and was captured by U.S. forces in Afghanistan in 2001, got out of prison Thursday after more than 17 years, released under tight restrictions that reflected government fears he […]

Banks & Banking

Judge considers whether terror watchlist is unconstitutional

April 4, 2019 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A federal judge says he will rule in the near future on the constitutionality of a government watchlist that includes more than 1 million people the FBI considers to be “known or suspected terrorists.” The Council on American-Islamic Relations sued in […]

Government & Politics

Rights group: Terror watchlist shared with animal shelters

March 11, 2019 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A Muslim civil-rights group says the FBI is letting animal shelters, private investigators and even a Midwestern megachurch have access to its watchlist of suspected terrorists. In court documents unsealed after a court hearing Friday, lawyers for the Council on American-Islamic […]

Government & Politics

Judge orders feds to list private groups receiving watchlist

February 22, 2019 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A federal magistrate on Friday ordered the government to disclose to him and to plaintiffs’ attorneys a list of private organizations that receive access to the government’s list of known or suspected terrorists. Judge John Anderson issued the ruling at the […]

Government & Politics

Muslim group seeks congressional probe on terror watchlist

February 20, 2019 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) A Muslim civil rights group called for a congressional investigation Wednesday after its lawsuit revealed that the U.S. government has shared access to parts of its terrorist watchlist with more than 1,400 private entities, including hospitals and universities. The Council on […]

Government & Politics

Feds share watchlist with 1,400 private groups

February 19, 2019 Matthew Barakat  

(AP) The federal government has acknowledged that it shares its terrorist watchlist with more than 1,400 private entities, including hospitals and universities, prompting concerns from civil libertarians that those mistakenly placed on the list could face a wide variety of hassles in […]

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Recent Posts

  • IS supporter jailed for Instagram terrorism posts October 10, 2025
  • Man who burned Quran wins free speech appeal October 10, 2025
  • Mallorca far-right party Vox calls for ban on hijabs and Islamic religion classes in Balearic schools October 9, 2025
  • Belgium says foiled jihadist plot for drone attack on PM October 9, 2025
  • Man appeals Quran burning with ‘free speech’ October 9, 2025
  • Islamic State supporter ‘hero-worshipped’ mastermind of 2015 Paris attacks, court told October 9, 2025
  • Man ‘expressed wish to kill Jews,’ court hears October 9, 2025
  • Two men planned ‘untold harm’ with attack on Jewish community in Manchester, jury told — as defendant shouts out in court October 8, 2025

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