Your tax dollars at work again – U.S. Government funding Dar Al-Hijrah radical mosque! Once home to Anwar al-Awlaki

anwar_al-awlakiFederal law enforcement officials call it a front for Hamas terrorists which “has been under numerous investigations for financing and [providing] aid and comfort to bad orgs and members.” The U.S. Census Bureau calls it landlord. Yes, the “famous” mosque that Anwar al-Awlaki once called home is being funded with your tax dollars! According to IPT, in gearing up for the 2010 Census, the General Services Administration (GSA) leased office space throughout the country. One location is a 6,654 square foot section of a two-story building on Edsall Road in Alexandria, Va. owned by the Dar Al-Hijrah mosque. The United States government is spending $582,000, or about $23,000 per month, to lease the space from November 2008 through the end of this year!

The GSA helped the Commerce Department find office space for the Census. A GSA spokeswoman did not respond to requests for comment or for clarification of the lease’s true cost. Fairfax County property records indicate that Dar Al-Hijrah bought the 40,000-square-foot building in May 2008 for $5.8 million.

The Investigative Project on Terrorism obtained the reports referencing Dar al-Hijrah through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request seeking records related to a brief detention of Awlaki. Those records were copies of TECS reports – a computer database operated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Some of the reports released to the IPT are redacted.

TECS data generally provides a summary narrative and referral to more detailed case references and case agent contacts.

The TECS reports dated in 2002 obtained under this FOIA stated that Dar Al-Hijrah was “associated with Islamic extremists” and was “operating as a front for Hamas operatives in U.S.” A report dated in December, 2007, said the mosque “has been linked to numerous individuals linked to terrorism financing” and “has also been associated with encouraging fraudulent marriages.” Another December 2007 report advised Dar Al-Hijrah, “has been under numerous investigations for financing and proving (sic) aid and comfort to bad orgs and members.”

The TECS reports indicate that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) generated the information.

Federal law enforcement officials have become well acquainted with Dar al-Hijrah over the years.

It was home to radical cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, today considered the inspiration to Fort Hood shooter Nidal Malik Hassan and Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the Nigerian man who tried to detonate an explosive in his underpants on a flight to Detroit Christmas Day. Reports also indicate that Times Square attempted bomber Faisal Shahzad was inspired in part by Awlawki.

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May 11, 2010 · Filed Under Government Spending, muslims, Terrorism


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