Al Marri in Peoria Admits Guilt

I know everyone is glued to the Bulls, but Holy __! This, from the Tribune:

Accused Al Qaeda sleeper agent Ali Al-Marri made a stunning reversal in federal court in Peoria today, pleading guilty to conspiring and providing support for two of the chief architects of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Peoria Journal Star:

A plea agreement worked out between al-Marri and federal prosecutors stated al-Marri attended several terrorist training camps in Pakistan, where he learned basic military skills as well as information on poisons, how to conceal material on computers and counter surveillance.

It was at one of these camps that he met Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, or KSM, who later, in 2001, asked him to go to the United States for a mission.

What al-Marri was to do on that mission wasn’t discussed in court, but KSM told him to arrive no later than Sept. 10, 2001, to communicate in code and to remain here for an indefinite period of time.

You may recall KSM, currently at Gitmo, was the guy who hacked off Daniel Pearl's head. Oh, and al-Marri has a brother in Gitmo, did you know that? Washington Times:

After charging al-Marri in criminal court, the Obama administration stopped using the term "enemy combatant" and changed the definition of who could be detained under such circumstances.

So reassuring. But this Al-Marri apparently didn't get the memo. That he was harmless. Not even an "enemy combatant".

Of course, we knew he was harmless back in the day, because some in the media (NY Times), the judiciary, and our government told us so.

Hmm, how about those Uighers. Human Events:

Moving quickly to release Chinese Uighur terrorists into the United States, Obama administration officials have -- for the second time -- overridden objections of federal agencies responsible for national security.

Just a bunch of innocent goatherds. For sure. Probably they'll set up a Facebook account first thing. No worries. Our President Barack Obama has spoken.

More: CBS2 Chicago on his mental health. CNN:

According to government sources, information from al Qaeda leaders in U.S. custody identified al-Marri as someone who helped the group's operatives entering the United States.

Charming, I'm sure. NY Times:

During the nearly six years that Ali Saleh Kahlah al-Marri spent in isolation in a Navy brig as the last enemy combatant held on United States soil, he denied the government’s charges that he was a sleeper agent for al-Qaeda, his lawyers said. But on Thursday, in a federal courtroom in Peoria, Ill., that denial fell apart when Mr. al-Marri reached a deal with the government to plead guilty to conspiracy to provide material support to al-Qaeda. [snip]

Mr. al-Marri, a native of Qatar, and his family did arrive in the United States on Sept. 10, and he enrolled at Bradley University, a Peoria insitution he had attended during an earlier stay in the United States. While there, he admitted, he “researched online information related to various cyanide compounds” and communicated in code with al-Qaeda operatives; investigators found an almanac with bookmarked pages marked showing dams, waterways and tunnels in the United States.

P.S. In other good news, Iran the nuke-seeking terror state improves relations with Hugo Chavez:

President Hugo Chavez's government has agreed to strengthen military ties with Iran.

Iranian Defense Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar met with Chavez for an hour late Wednesday and said they discussed defense cooperation to "protect peace and tranquility in the region," Venezuela's Information Ministry said in a statement.

"There's a strategic alliance between Venezuela and Iran," Najjar was quoted as saying. "There's a great deal of economic and industrial cooperation, and we started cooperating in the area of defense five years ago."

But perhaps this was our President Barack Obama's objective. Peace and tranquillity, don't you know.