Sahim Alwan is a

Yemeni-American Yemeni Americans are Americans of Yemeni ancestry. According to an estimate of 2010, more than 100,000 Yemenis live in the United States. History Although it is unknown when Yemenis first arrived, it is believed that Yemenis were immigrating ...

who grew up in the suburbs of

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Sou ...

. In 2002, he was arrested and charged as part of the

War on Terror The war on terror, officially the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT), is an ongoing international counterterrorism military campaign initiated by the United States following the September 11 attacks. The main targets of the campaign are militant ...

together with the other members of the " Lackawanna Six", based on the fact the group of friends had attended an

Afghan training camp Afghan may refer to: *Something of or related to Afghanistan, a country in Southern-Central Asia *Afghans, people or citizens of Afghanistan, typically of any ethnicity ** Afghan (ethnonym), the historic term applied strictly to people of the Pas ...

together years earlier. Like the others, although initially entering a plea of "not guilty", he eventually pleaded guilty to "providing material support or resources to a foreign terrorist organization". He was convicted and received a 9.5-year sentence."Sahim Alwan Sentenced for Providing Material Support to Al Qaeda "
, December 17, 2003, FBI.gov

Life

Described as the "clean-cut" son of a steelworker, Alwan was noted for always wearing a shirt and tie, every day of his adult life, and studied

criminal justice Criminal justice is the delivery of justice to those who have been accused of committing crimes. The criminal justice system is a series of government agencies and institutions. Goals include the rehabilitation of offenders, preventing other ...

at the local

community college A community college is a type of educational institution. The term can have different meanings in different countries: many community colleges have an "open enrollment" for students who have graduated from high school (also known as senior se ...

. During the

Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a Coalition of the Gulf War, 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Ba'athist Iraq, ...

, he and a group of friends were assaulted for their ethnicity outside a Lackawanna restaurant. In the late 1990s, while working for

Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association Blue Cross Blue Shield Association (BCBS, BCBSA) is a federation, or supraorganization, of, in 2022, 34 independent and locally operated BCBSA companies that provide health insurance in the United States to more than 106 million people. It was ...

, he cooperated with the FBI to help investigate a fraud case, and asked them about the possibility of working for them as a career. A "local success story", he maintained a stable marriage, had three children, and worked with the Iroquois Job Corps Center to help employ indigent and troubled youth. At al-Farooq training camp he was discouraged by the fact they were training for offensive wars and wars against fellow Muslims, rather than in defence of Muslim populations. He announced that he wanted to leave and return home. He met personally with Osama bin Laden, who wanted to convince him to stay and finish his training. Taher, Moseb and Galeb also decided to leave. They were all driven to

Quetta Quetta (; ur, ; ; ps, کوټه‎) is the tenth most populous city in Pakistan with a population of over 1.1 million. It is situated in south-west of the country close to the International border with Afghanistan. It is the capital of ...

, and rather than wait a day for the next plane, took a bus to

Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former c ...

so they could leave Pakistan immediately. Immediately following the

September 11th 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 commer ...

, Alwan was interviewed as a

man on the street ( )Vox Populi
. Oxford Diction ...

by the

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as he left his mosque, to give his opinion on the attacks. He responded that Islam guaranteed hellfire to anyone who took part in a suicide mission. He phoned agent Ed Needham at the FBI that night, to promise his full cooperation in the Muslim community if the FBI needed help.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alwan, Sahim American people imprisoned on charges of terrorism Buffalo Six Living people People from Lackawanna, New York Lackawanna College alumni Year of birth missing (living people)