John Philip Walker Lindh (born February 9, 1981) is an American convicted felon who was captured as an

enemy combatant Enemy combatant is a person who, either lawfully or unlawfully, engages in hostilities for the other side in an armed conflict. Usually enemy combatants are members of the armed forces of the state with which another state is at war. In the case ...

during the United States'

invasion of Afghanistan In late 2001, the United States and its close allies invaded Afghanistan and toppled the Taliban government. The invasion's aims were to dismantle al-Qaeda, which had executed the September 11 attacks, and to deny it a safe base of operation ...

in November 2001. He was detained at

Qala-i-Jangi Qala-i-Jangi (Dari/Pashto: ) is a 19th-century fortress located near Mazar-i-Sharif in northern Afghanistan. It is known for being the site of a bloody 2001 Taliban uprising named the Battle of Qala-i-Jangi, in which at least 470 people were kil ...

fortress, used as a prison. He denied participating in the

Battle of Qala-i-Jangi The Battle of Qala-i-Jangi (sometimes also referred to as the "Battle of Mazar-i-Sharif") was a six-day military engagement following an uprising of prisoners-of-war on November 25, 2001. The battle took place between November 25 and December 1 ...

, a violent uprising of the

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...

prisoners, stating that he was wounded in the leg and hid in the cellar of the Pink House, in the southern half of the fort. He was one of 86 of the estimated 400 prisoners to survive the uprising, in which

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...

officer Johnny "Mike" Spann was killed. Brought to trial in United States federal court in February 2002, Lindh accepted a plea bargain; he pleaded guilty to two charges and was sentenced to 20 years in prison. He was released on supervision on May 23, 2019, for a three-year period of supervised release. A

convert Conversion or convert may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * "Conversion" (''Doctor Who'' audio), an episode of the audio drama ''Cyberman'' * "Conversion" (''Stargate Atlantis''), an episode of the television series * "The Conversion" ...

Sunni Islam Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disag ...

in California at age 16, Lindh traveled to Yemen in 1998 to study

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

and stayed there for 10 months. He later returned in 2000, then went to Afghanistan to aid the

in fighting against the Afghan Northern Alliance. He received training at Al-Farouq, a training camp associated with

al-Qaeda Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military targets in various countr ...

, designated a terrorist organization by the United States and other countries. While at the camp, he attended a lecture by

Osama bin Laden Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden (10 March 1957 – 2 May 2011) was a Saudi-born extremist militant who founded al-Qaeda and served as its leader from 1988 until his death in 2011. Ideologically a pan-Islamist, his group is designated ...

. After the

9/11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commerci ...

, he remained with the Taliban military forces despite learning that the U.S. had become allied with the Northern Alliance. Lindh had previously received training with

Harkat-ul-Mujahideen Harkat-ul-Mujahideen- al-Islami ( ur, ; HUM) is a Pakistan-based Islamic jihad group operating primarily in Kashmir.designated terrorist organization based in Pakistan. Lindh went by the name Sulayman al-Faris during his time in Afghanistan, but prefers the name Abu Sulayman al-Irlandi today. In early reports following his capture, when the press learned that he was a U.S. citizen, he was usually referred to by the news media as just "John Walker".

Youth, conversion, and travels

Lindh was born in Washington, D.C., to Marilyn Walker and Frank R. Lindh, as the middle of three children in the family. He was named "John" after

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...

, who was

murdered Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification or valid excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person without justification or excuse, especially the ...

two months before Lindh's birth. He was

baptized Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost i ...

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, and grew up in

Silver Spring, Maryland Silver Spring is a census-designated place (CDP) in southeastern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, near Washington, D.C. Although officially unincorporated, in practice it is an edge city, with a population of 81,015 at the 2020 ce ...

. When he was 10 years old, his family moved to

San Anselmo, California San Anselmo () is an incorporated town in Marin County, California, United States. San Anselmo is located west of San Rafael, at an elevation of 46 feet (14 m). It is located about north of San Francisco. The town is bordered by San Rafael ...

. Lindh suffered from an intestinal disorder as a child. At age 14, his health improved. He enrolled at Redwood High School as a freshman. He then transferred to Tamiscal High School in the

Tamalpais Union High School District The Tamalpais Union High School District or TUHSD provides high school education to students residing in ten elementary districts in central and southern Marin County, California and parts of West Marin. The headquarters are on the property of ...

, an alternative school offering self-directed, individualized study programs. While there, he studied world culture, including

and the Middle East. Lindh dropped out of the school and eventually earned an equivalent of a high school diploma by passing the California High School Proficiency Exam at age 16. As an adolescent, Lindh participated in

IRC Internet Relay Chat (IRC) is a text-based chat system for instant messaging. IRC is designed for group communication in discussion forums, called '' channels'', but also allows one-on-one communication via private messages as well as chat an ...

chat room The term chat room, or chatroom (and sometimes group chat; abbreviated as GC), is primarily used to describe any form of synchronous conferencing, occasionally even asynchronous conferencing. The term can thus mean any technology, ranging from ...

s with the IRC nickname Mujahid. He became a devoted fan of hip-hop music and engaged in extensive discussions on

Usenet Usenet () is a worldwide distributed discussion system available on computers. It was developed from the general-purpose Unix-to-Unix Copy (UUCP) dial-up network architecture. Tom Truscott and Jim Ellis conceived the idea in 1979, and it wa ...

newsgroup A Usenet newsgroup is a repository usually within the Usenet system, for messages posted from users in different locations using the Internet. They are discussion groups and are not devoted to publishing news. Newsgroups are technically disti ...

s, sometimes pretending to be an African American rapper who would criticize others for "acting black."

Spike Lee Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee (born March 20, 1957) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. His production company, 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, has produced more than 35 films since 1983. He made his directorial debut ...

's film ''

Malcolm X Malcolm X (born Malcolm Little, later Malik el-Shabazz; May 19, 1925 – February 21, 1965) was an American Muslim minister and human rights activist who was a prominent figure during the civil rights movement. A spokesman for the Nation of I ...

'' impressed him deeply and sparked his interest in Islam. Although his parents did not divorce until 1999, their marriage was in serious trouble throughout Lindh's adolescence. His father often left their Marin residence for extended periods to live in San Francisco with a male lover. Frank Lindh said he and Marilyn had been separated since 1997. In 1997, at the age of 16, Lindh

converted Conversion or convert may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * "Conversion" (''Doctor Who'' audio), an episode of the audio drama ''Cyberman'' * "Conversion" (''Stargate Atlantis''), an episode of the television series * "The Conversion" ...

to Islam. He began regularly attending mosques in Mill Valley and later in nearby San Francisco. In 1998, Lindh traveled to Yemen and stayed for about 10 months to learn Arabic so that he could read the

Qur'an The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , si ...

in its original language. He returned to the United States in 1999, living with his family for about eight months. Lindh returned to Yemen in February 2000 and left for Pakistan to study at a ''

madrasa Madrasa (, also , ; Arabic: مدرسة , pl. , ) is the Arabic word for any type of educational institution, secular or religious (of any religion), whether for elementary instruction or higher learning. The word is variously transliterated '' ...

''. While abroad, Lindh exchanged numerous emails with his family. In one, his father told him about the USS ''Cole'' bombing, to which Lindh replied that the American naval destroyers being in the Yemen harbor had been an act of war, and that the bombing was justified. "This raised my concerns," his father told ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis (businessman), Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print m ...

'', "but my days of molding him were over." At the age of 20, Lindh decided to travel to Afghanistan to fight for the Afghan

government forces against Northern Alliance fighters. His parents said that he was moved by stories of atrocities allegedly perpetrated by the Northern Alliance army against civilians. He traveled to Afghanistan in May 2001. Tony West, his lawyer, explained it as follows: "One of the first things he told Army interrogators when they questioned him on December 3, 2001, was that after 9/11 happened, he wanted to leave the front lines but couldn't for fear of his life. John never wanted to be in a position where he was opposing the United States (and never thought he would be), and in fact he never opposed any American military."

Capture and interrogation

Lindh surrendered on November 24, 2001 to

Afghan Northern Alliance The Northern Alliance, officially known as the United Islamic National Front for the Salvation of Afghanistan ( prs, جبهه متحد اسلامی ملی برای نجات افغانستان ''Jabha-yi Muttahid-i Islāmi-yi Millī barāyi Nijāt ...

forces after his Al Qaeda foreign fighters unit surrendered at

Kunduz , native_name_lang = prs , other_name = , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = Kunduz River valley.jpg , imagesize = 300 , image_alt = , image_caption = , image_ ...

after retreating from Takar. He and other fighters were to be questioned by the

officers Johnny "Mike" Spann and David Tyson at

General Dostum Abdul Rashid Dostum ( ; prs, عبدالرشید دوستم; Uzbek Latin: , Uzbek Cyrillic: , ; born 25 March 1954) is an Afghan exiled politician, former Marshal in the Afghan National Army, founder and leader of the political party Junbish- ...

's military garrison,

, near Mazār-e Sharīf. During the initial questioning, Lindh was not advised of his rights and his request for a lawyer was denied. Lindh, who had a grandmother from County Donegal, had told other prisoners he was Irish. While being interviewed by the CIA, he did not speak or reveal that he was American. Spann asked Lindh, "Are you a member of the IRA?" He was asked this question because, when questioned by Spann, an Iraqi in the group identified Lindh as an English speaker. Lindh had been told to say he was "Irish" to avoid problems. Moments later, around 11 a.m., the makeshift prison was the scene of a violent uprising, which became known as the

. Spann and hundreds of foreign fighters were killed; only 86 prisoners survived. According to other detainees interviewed by journalist Robert Young Pelton for CNN, Lindh was fully aware of the planned uprising, yet remained silent and did not cooperate with the Americans. Sometime during the initial uprising, Lindh was shot or hit by shrapnel in the right upper thigh and found refuge in a basement, hiding with the rest of the detainees. On the second day, the

Red Cross The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million Volunteering, volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure re ...

sent in workers to collect the dead. As soon as they entered, the workers were shot by the prisoners, who killed one. The Northern Alliance repeatedly bombarded the area with RPGs and grenade attacks, and burning fuel poured in. Finally, on December 2, 2001, Northern Alliance forces diverted an

irrigation Irrigation (also referred to as watering) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has been devel ...

stream into the middle of the camp to flush the remaining prisoners out of their underground shelters, drowning many in the process.Taliban Uprising
''National Geographic Documentary'' Lindh and about 85 survivors from the original 300–500 were forced out of hiding. Northern Alliance soldiers bound Lindh's elbows behind his back. Shortly after his recapture, Lindh was noticed and interviewed by Pelton, who was working as a stringer for CNN. Lindh initially gave his name as "Abd-al-Hamid" but later gave his birth name. Pelton brought a medic and food for Lindh and interviewed him about how he got there. During the interview, Lindh said that he was a member of al-Ansar, a group of Arabic-speaking fighters financed by

. Lindh said that the prison uprising was sparked by some of the prisoners smuggling grenades into the basement: "This is against what we had agreed upon with the Northern Alliance, and this is against Islam. It is a major sin to break a contract, especially in military situations". A

U.S. Army Special Forces The United States Army Special Forces (SF), colloquially known as the "Green Berets" due to their distinctive service headgear, are a special operations force of the United States Army. The Green Berets are geared towards nine doctrinal mi ...

operator, fresh from three weeks of combat, gave up his bed so that the wounded Lindh could sleep there. Pelton repeatedly asked Lindh if he wanted to call his parents or have the journalist do so, but Lindh declined. An FBI source later told author

Toby Harnden Toby is a popular, usually male, name in many English speaking countries. The name is from the Middle English vernacular form of Tobias. Tobias itself is the Greek transliteration of the Hebrew טוביה ''Toviah'', which translates to ''Good i ...

that dark stains on the right side of Lindh’s face indicated he had fired a weapon at Qala-i Jangi. Lindh, however, was not tested for explosives or firearms residue before he was washed. John Walker Lindh Custody

After capture, Lindh was given basic first aid and questioned for a week at Mazār-e Sharīf. He was taken to Camp Rhino on December 7, 2001, the bullet or piece of shrapnel still within his thigh. When Lindh arrived at Camp Rhino, he was stripped and restrained on a stretcher, blindfolded and placed in a metal shipping container, which was procedure for dealing with a potentially dangerous detainee associated with a terrorist organization. On the day he left the Turkish School, he was photographed with the words "Shit Head" written onto duct tape on his blindfold by Green Berets posing for a "team photo" with their captive. The Green Berets, from ODA 592, were later investigated. While bound to the stretcher at Camp Rhino, Lindh was photographed by some American military personnel. At Camp Rhino, he was given

oxycodone/paracetamol Oxycodone/paracetamol, sold under the brand name Percocet among others, is a fixed-dose combination of the opioid oxycodone with paracetamol (acetaminophen), used to treat moderate to severe pain. In 2020, it was the 69th most commonly pres ...

for pain and

diazepam Diazepam, first marketed as Valium, is a medicine of the benzodiazepine family that acts as an anxiolytic. It is commonly used to treat a range of conditions, including anxiety, seizures, alcohol withdrawal syndrome, muscle spasms, insomnia, ...

. On December 8 and 9, he was interviewed by the FBI and was mirandized on December 9 or 10. He was held at Camp Rhino until he was transferred to the on December 14, 2001 with other wounded detainees, where his wound was operated on and he received further care. He was interrogated before the operation on December 14. While on the ''Peleliu'', he signed confession documents while he was held by the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through c ...

. On December 31, 2001, Lindh was transferred to the USS ''Bataan'', where he was held until January 22, 2002. He was flown back to the United States to face criminal charges. On January 16, 2002, Attorney General

John Ashcroft John David Ashcroft (born May 9, 1942) is an American lawyer, lobbyist and former politician who served as the 79th U.S. Attorney General in the George W. Bush administration from 2001 to 2005. A former U.S. Senator from Missouri and the 50th ...

announced that Lindh would be tried in the United States. In 2002, former President George H. W. Bush referred to Lindh as "some misguided

Marin County Marin County is a county located in the northwestern part of the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 262,231. Its county seat and largest city is San Rafael. Marin County is acros ...

hot-tubber". The comment, in which Bush also mispronounced the county's name, provoked a minor furor and prompted a retraction of the statement by Bush. Lindh's attorney told the press that his client had asked for a lawyer repeatedly before being interviewed by the FBI but he did not get one, and that "highly coercive" prison conditions forced Lindh to waive his

right to remain silent The right to silence is a legal principle which guarantees any individual the right to refuse to answer questions from law enforcement officers or court officials. It is a legal right recognized, explicitly or by convention, in many of the worl ...

. Although the FBI asked

Jesselyn Radack Jesselyn Radack (born December 12, 1970) is an American national security and human rights attorney known for her defense of whistleblowers, journalists, and hacktivists. She graduated from Brown University and Yale Law School and began her caree ...

, a

Justice Department A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

ethics adviser, whether Lindh could be questioned without a lawyer present, they did not follow her advice to avoid that scenario.

Trial and sentencing

On February 5, 2002, Lindh was indicted by a federal

grand jury A grand jury is a jury—a group of citizens—empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought. A grand jury may subpoena physical evidence or a p ...

on ten charges: *

Conspiracy A conspiracy, also known as a plot, is a secret plan or agreement between persons (called conspirers or conspirators) for an unlawful or harmful purpose, such as murder or treason, especially with political motivation, while keeping their agr ...

to murder U.S. citizens or U.S. nationals * Two counts of providing material support and resources to terrorist organizations * One count of supplying services to the Taliban * Conspiracy to contribute services to Al Qaeda * Contributing services to Al Qaeda * Conspiracy to supply services to the Taliban * Using and carrying firearms and destructive devices during crimes of violence If convicted of these charges, Lindh could have received up to three

life sentence Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment for a crime under which convicted people are to remain in prison for the rest of their natural lives or indefinitely until pardoned, paroled, or otherwise commuted to a fixed term. Crimes ...

s and 90 additional years in prison. On February 13, 2002, he pleaded not guilty to all 10 charges. The court scheduled an evidence suppression hearing, at which Lindh would have been able to testify about the details of the torture to which he claimed he was subjected. The government faced the problem that a key piece of evidence – Lindh's confession – might be excluded from evidence as having been coerced.

Michael Chertoff Michael Chertoff (born November 28, 1953) is an American attorney who was the second United States Secretary of Homeland Security to serve under President George W. Bush. Chertoff also served for one additional day under President Barack Obama. ...

, then-head of the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, then directed the prosecutors to offer Lindh a

plea bargain A plea bargain (also plea agreement or plea deal) is an agreement in criminal law proceedings, whereby the prosecutor provides a concession to the defendant in exchange for a plea of guilt or ''nolo contendere.'' This may mean that the defendant ...

. Lindh could plead guilty to two charges: supplying services to the Taliban (, , , and ) and carrying an explosive during the commission of a felony (). He would have to consent to a

gag order A gag order (also known as a gagging order or suppression order) is an order, typically a legal order by a court or government, restricting information or comment from being made public or passed onto any unauthorized third party. The phrase may ...

that would prevent him from making any public statements on the matter for the duration of his 20-year sentence, and he would have to drop any claims that he had been mistreated or

torture Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons such as punishment, extracting a confession, interrogation for information, or intimidating third parties. Some definitions are restricted to acts ...

d by U.S. military personnel in Afghanistan and aboard two military ships during December 2001 and January 2002. In return, all other charges would be dropped. The gag order was said to be at the request of Secretary of Defense

Donald Rumsfeld Donald Henry Rumsfeld (July 9, 1932 – June 29, 2021) was an American politician, government official and businessman who served as Secretary of Defense from 1975 to 1977 under president Gerald Ford, and again from 2001 to 2006 under Preside ...

. Lindh accepted this offer. On July 15, 2002, he entered his plea of guilty to the two remaining charges. The judge asked Lindh to say, in his own words, what he was admitting to: "I plead guilty. I provided my services as a soldier to the Taliban last year from about August to December. In the course of doing so, I carried a rifle and two grenades. I did so knowingly and willingly knowing that it was illegal." Lindh said that he "went to Afghanistan with the intention of fighting against terrorism and oppression", fighting for the suffering of ordinary people at the hands of the Northern Alliance. On October 4, 2002, Judge T.S. Ellis III imposed a sentence of 20 years in federal prison. Some activists and academics called for Lindh to tell his story. The government invoked the Son of Sam law and informed Lindh that any and all profits made from book deals or any movies about Lindh's experience would be automatically transferred to the federal government. Lindh, his family, his relatives, his associates and his friends will be unable to profit financially from his crimes and/or experiences. Lindh's attorney, James Brosnahan, said Lindh would be eligible for release in 17 years, with good behavior. Lindh agreed to cooperate "fully, truthfully and completely" with both

military intelligence Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist commanders in their decisions. This aim is achieved by providing an assessment of data from a ...

and

law enforcement agencies A law enforcement agency (LEA) is any government agency responsible for the enforcement of the laws. Jurisdiction LEAs which have their ability to apply their powers restricted in some way are said to operate within a jurisdiction. LEA ...

in the terrorism investigation.

Imprisonment

In January 2003, Lindh was sent to the U.S. Penitentiary, Victorville, a high-security facility northeast of Los Angeles. On March 3, 2003, Lindh was tackled by inmate Richard Dale Morrison. He assaulted Lindh at prayer, causing bruises on his forehead. On July 2, 2003, Morrison was charged with a

misdemeanor A misdemeanor (American English, spelled misdemeanour elsewhere) is any "lesser" criminal act in some common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished less severely than more serious felonies, but theoretically more so than adm ...

count of assault. Lindh was held in Federal Supermax

ADX Florence The United States Penitentiary, Florence Administrative Maximum Facility (USP Florence ADMAX), commonly known as ADX Florence, is an American federal prison in Fremont County near Florence, Colorado. It is operated by the Federal Bureau of Pri ...

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico ...

, Colorado for a short time. He served his sentence as prisoner 45426-083, at the Federal Correctional Institution at Terre Haute, Indiana in the Communication Management Unit. In April 2007, citing the reduced sentence for the Australian prisoner

David Matthew Hicks David Matthew Hicks (born 7 August 1975) is an Australian who attended al-Qaeda's Al Farouq training camp in Afghanistan, and met with Osama bin Laden during 2001. He was then detained by the United States in Guantanamo Bay detention camp fro ...

, Lindh's attorneys made a public plea for a Presidential

commutation Commute, commutation or commutative may refer to: * Commuting, the process of travelling between a place of residence and a place of work Mathematics * Commutative property, a property of a mathematical operation whose result is insensitive to th ...

to lessen his 20-year sentence. In January 2009, the Lindh family's petition for clemency was denied by President Bush in one of his final acts in office. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, all "

special administrative measure A special administrative measure (SAM) is a process under United States law (; see also USAMbr>title 9 chapter 24— Requests for Special Confinement Conditions) whereby the United States Attorney General may direct the United States Bureau of Pr ...

s" in place against Lindh expired on March 20, 2009, as part of a gradual easing of restrictions on him. In 2010, Lindh and the Syrian-American prisoner

Enaam Arnaout Enaam M. Arnaout ( Kunya: ''Abu Mahmoud'';Fitzgerald, Patrick J. United States of America v. Enaam M. Arnaout,Governments Evidentiary Proffer Supporting the Admissibility of Co-Conspirator Statements, before Hon. Suzanne B. Conlon born 1962) is a S ...

sued to lift restrictions on group prayer by Muslim inmates in the Communication Management Unit. On January 11, 2013, a federal judge ruled in their favor, saying that the government had shown no compelling interest in restricting the religious speech of the inmates by prohibiting them from praying together. In February 2015, Lindh wrote to a California television producer, expressing support for ISIS or the Islamic State, the militant group that had recently beheaded five Westerners in televised executions. Asked if he supported the Islamic State, Lindh, now calling himself "Yahya", Arabic for John, replied in a handwritten letter: "Yes, and they are doing a spectacular job. The Islamic State is clearly very sincere and serious about fulfilling the long-neglected religious obligation of establishing a caliphate through armed struggle, which is the only correct method". In 2017, ''

Foreign Policy magazine A state's foreign policy or external policy (as opposed to internal or domestic policy) is its objectives and activities in relation to its interactions with other states, unions, and other political entities, whether bilaterally or through m ...

'' reported an internal report by the

National Counterterrorism Center The National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) is a United States government organization responsible for national and international counterterrorism efforts. It is based in Liberty Crossing, a modern complex near Tysons Corner in McLean, Virginia ...

asserted Lindh told a visiting television news producer that he had not renounced extremist violence. Lindh was interviewed for the 2016 book ''The Way of the Strangers: Encounters With the Islamic State'' by Graeme Wood, on the condition that Wood provide Lindh with "books, treatises, articles, or other writings produced by leaders of the Islamic State and/or scholars affiliated with it (preferably in the original Arabic)." Upon sending the package of literature was blocked from delivery by the prison as it was deemed contraband, however Lindh decided to continue corresponding with Wood, though he later ended the correspondence by saying he was a "layman" whose opinions had "no consequence", referring to his knowledge of the Islamic State. Lindh secured

Irish citizenship Irish nationality law details the conditions by which a person is a national of the Republic of Ireland. The primary law governing these regulations is the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act, 1956, which came into force on 17 July 1956. Re ...

in 2013 through his paternal grandmother, Kathleen Maguire, who was born in

Donegal Donegal may refer to: County Donegal, Ireland * County Donegal, a county in the Republic of Ireland, part of the province of Ulster * Donegal (town), a town in County Donegal in Ulster, Ireland * Donegal Bay, an inlet in the northwest of Ireland b ...

Release

On May 23, 2019, Lindh was released early for good behavior from the Terre Haute, Indiana federal prison prior to the end of his twenty-year sentence, although he accepted several probation requirements due to his continued support of Islamist ideology. These requirements included a ban from internet use and contact with fellow extremists. The probation lasted for the remaining three years of his sentence.

In popular culture

* In a ''

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widel ...

'' documentary, ''Taliban Uprising'', the only video of Lindh speaking since his capture is shown. * The documentary ''Good Morning, Afghanistan'' by Damien Degueldre features the Battle of Masar-el Sharif, where John Walker was being held and later transferred by the Northern Alliance to US Special Forces Operatives. *

DJ Krush , better known by his stage name DJ Krush, is a record producer and DJ. He is known for his atmospheric instrumental production which incorporates sound elements from nature and extensive use of jazz and soul samples. Early life Ishi was born in ...

and

Anticon Anticon (often styled as anticon.) is an independent record label based in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1998 by seven musicians and manager Baillie Parker. It is now collectively owned among six musicians, co-founder Parker, and m ...

recorded the song "Song for John Walker" for the 2002 album ''

The Message at the Depth ''The Message at the Depth'' is the seventh solo studio album by Japanese hip hop producer DJ Krush. It was released in 2002. It peaked at number 23 on the ''Billboard'' Top Dance/Electronic Albums chart. Critical reception Tamara Palmer of ''XLR ...

''. * The 2003 book "My Heart Became Attached" by Mark Kukis was a biography of John Walker Lindh, tracing his life from childhood to radicalization to prison * A musical interpretation of John Walker Lindh's story was staged in 2004 by Jean Strong and John McCloskey at the New York International Fringe Festival *

Steve Earle Stephen Fain Earle (; born January 17, 1955) is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, author, and actor. Earle began his career as a songwriter in Nashville and released his first EP in 1982. Initially working in the country music ...

recorded a song about Lindh titled "John Walker's Blues". It was released on his 2002 album ''

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

''. * The

progressive bluegrass Bluegrass music is a genre of American roots music that developed in the 1940s in the Appalachian region of the United States. The genre derives its name from the band Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys. Like mainstream country music, it lar ...

band

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wrote and recorded ''The Trial Of John Walker Lindh'' for their 2002 album ''Live at the Freight and Salvage.'' * The 13th-season premiere of the police procedural and legal drama television series ''

Law & Order ''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment, launching the '' Law & Order'' franchise. ''Law & Order'' aired its entire run on NBC, premiering ...

'' is based on the Lindh case. * A novel by Pearl Abraham entitled ''American Taliban'' (2010) is based on Lindh. * In episode seven of the first season of the television series ''

Entourage An entourage () is an informal group or band of people who are closely associated with a (usually) famous, notorious, or otherwise notable individual. The word can also refer to: Arts and entertainment * L'entourage, French hip hop / rap collecti ...

'' Vince is offered a role in a fictitious movie based on "the John Walker Lindh story". * In author

Doug Stanton Doug Stanton is an American journalist, lecturer, screenwriter, and author of The New York Times Best Seller list, ''New York Times'' bestsellers ''In Harm's Way: The Sinking of the USS Indianapolis and the Extraordinary Story of Its Survivors'' ...

's book ''Horse Soldiers'' Lindh is mentioned as one of the Al-Qaeda combatants, then as a prisoner. * In the popular philosophy collection ''Dune and Philosophy'', American philosophy expert Shane Ralston defends Lindh's character as "quintessentially American" given the idealism, bravery and religious fervor with which he served the Taliban forces in Afghanistan. * The Spanish writer Enrique Falcón included a poem titled John Walker Lindh on the book ''Taberna Roja'' (2008). * The podcast ''

You're Wrong About ''You're Wrong About'' is an American history and pop culture podcast created by journalist Michael Hobbes and writer Sarah Marshall. It has been hosted by Marshall since its inception; Hobbes also hosted until 2021. Launched in May 2018, the s ...

'' featured Lindh in an episode titled "The American Taliban". * Lindh is initially referred to as "the Irishman" in the 2021 book "First Casualty: The Untold Story of the CIA Mission to Avenge 9/11" by

. *

Showtime Networks Showtime Networks Inc. is an American entertainment company that oversees the company's premium cable television channels, including its flagship service Showtime. It is a subsidiary of media conglomerate Paramount Global under its networks uni ...

released a documentary, ''Detainee 001'', about Lindh's capture and interrogations, in September 2021.

References

External links

The Lindh indictment

on

FindLaw FindLaw is a business of Thomson Reuters Thomson Reuters Corporation ( ) is a Canadian multinational media conglomerate. The company was founded in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, where it is headquartered at the Bay Adelaide Centre. Thom ...

Free John Walker Lindh
– Advocacy website.
"The Real Story of John Walker Lindh"
by Frank Lindh, ''

AlterNet AlterNet is a left-leaning online news outlet. It was launched in 1997 by the Independent Media Institute. In 2018, the website was acquired by owners of '' Raw Story''. Coverage Coverage is divided into several special sections related to progr ...

'', January 24, 2006. – An address to the

Commonwealth Club of California The Commonwealth Club of California is a non-profit, non-partisan educational organization based in Northern California. Founded in 1903, it is the oldest and largest public affairs forum in the United States. Membership is open to everyone. Act ...

by John Walker Lindh's father. *
Audio file of above speech
(in

RealAudio RealAudio, or also spelled as Real Audio is a proprietary audio format developed by RealNetworks and first released in April 1995. It uses a variety of audio codecs, ranging from low-bitrate formats that can be used over dialup modems, to high-fi ...

format)
"False and misleading statements by Mr. Frank Lindh omits many known facts: Article of appeal"
by Johnny Spann, ''HonorMikeSpann.com'', February 1, 2006. (

PDF Portable Document Format (PDF), standardized as ISO 32000, is a file format developed by Adobe in 1992 to present documents, including text formatting and images, in a manner independent of application software, hardware, and operating systems. ...

file) – Response by Mike Spann's father.
"The Real Story of John Walker Lindh"
– 2013 Frank Lindh interview on The Peter B. Collins Show.
"America's 'detainee 001' – the persecution of John Walker Lindh"
by Frank Lindh, in ''The Guardian'', July 10, 2011 {{DEFAULTSORT:Lindh, John Walker 1981 births 21st-century American criminals American expatriates in Afghanistan American expatriates in Pakistan American defectors American former Christians American Islamists American people imprisoned on charges of terrorism American Taliban Converts to Islam from Roman Catholicism Inmates of ADX Florence Living people People convicted on terrorism charges People from San Anselmo, California People from Silver Spring, Maryland Prisoners and detainees of the United States federal government Redwood High School (Larkspur, California) alumni