Photo: Steve Gonzales , Houston Chronicle
Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan appeared in federal court in Houston on Friday, Jan. 8, 2015. Al Hardan is accused of providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization, providing false information to obtain citizenship and making false statements to U.S. officials.
lessOmar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan appeared in federal court in Houston on Friday, Jan. 8, 2015. Al Hardan is accused of providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization, providing false information to
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Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan, left, is escorted by U.S. Marshals from the Bob Casey Federal Courthouse on Friday, Jan. 8, 2016, in Houston. Al Hardan made his initial appearance in federal court in Houston Friday morning after he was indicted Wednesday on three charges related to accusations he tried to provide material support to the Islamic State group. (AP Photo/Bob Levey)
lessOmar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan, left, is escorted by U.S. Marshals from the Bob Casey Federal Courthouse on Friday, Jan. 8, 2016, in Houston. Al Hardan made his initial appearance in federal court in Houston Friday
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Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan, left, walks out of the Bob Casey Federal Courthouse accompanied by U.S. Marshals, Friday, Jan. 8, 2016, in Houston. ( Marie D. De Jesus / Marie D. De Jesus )
Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan, left, walks out of the Bob Casey Federal Courthouse accompanied by U.S. Marshals, Friday, Jan. 8, 2016, in Houston. ( Marie D. De Jesus / Marie D. De Jesus )
Photo: Marie D. De Jesus, Staff
Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan is escorted out of the Bob Casey United States Courthouse by U.S. Marshalls Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016, in Houston. ( Jon Shapley / Houston Chronicle )
Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan is escorted out of the Bob Casey United States Courthouse by U.S. Marshalls Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016, in Houston. ( Jon Shapley / Houston Chronicle )
Photo: Jon Shapley, Staff
Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan is escorted out of the Bob Casey United States Courthouse by U.S. Marshalls Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016, in Houston.
Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan is escorted out of the Bob Casey United States Courthouse by U.S. Marshalls Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016, in Houston.
Photo: Jon Shapley, Houston Chronicle
Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan is escorted out of the Bob Casey United States Courthouse by U.S. Marshalls Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016, in Houston.
Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan is escorted out of the Bob Casey United States Courthouse by U.S. Marshalls Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016, in Houston.
Photo: Jon Shapley, Houston Chronicle
According to the FBI, Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan told his wife he wanted to blow himself up.
is escorted out of the Bob Casey United States Courthouse by U.S. Marshalls Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016, in Houston. ( Jon Shapley / Houston Chronicle )
lessAccording to the FBI, Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan told his wife he wanted to blow himself up.
is escorted out of the Bob Casey United States Courthouse by U.S. Marshalls Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016, in Houston.
... more
Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan is escorted out of the Bob Casey United States Courthouse by U.S. Marshalls Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016, in Houston.
Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan is escorted out of the Bob Casey United States Courthouse by U.S. Marshalls Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016, in Houston.
Photo: Jon Shapley, Houston Chronicle
Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan is escorted out of the Bob Casey United States Courthouse by U.S. Marshalls Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016, in Houston.
Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan is escorted out of the Bob Casey United States Courthouse by U.S. Marshalls Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016, in Houston.
Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan walks out with handcuffs of the Bob Casey Federal Courthouse accompanied by U.S. Marshals, Friday, Jan. 8, 2016, in Houston.
Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan walks out with handcuffs of the Bob Casey Federal Courthouse accompanied by U.S. Marshals, Friday, Jan. 8, 2016, in Houston.
Photo: Marie D. De Jesus
Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan, with his 10 month old son, khattab
Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan, with his 10 month old son, khattab
Photo: Family Photo
Here's a look at the evolution of the Islamic State group, its atrocities and the world's response to the extremists.
Here's a look at the evolution of the Islamic State group, its atrocities and the world's response to the extremists.
November 13, 2015
129 people were killed in Paris during a coordinated attack planned by Islamic State involving multiple attackers, automatic weapons and multiple suicide bombs.
November 13, 2015
129 people were killed in Paris during a coordinated attack planned by Islamic State involving multiple attackers, automatic weapons and multiple suicide bombs.
Nov. 13, 2015
U.S. officials overnight say they launched a drone strike targeting Jihadi John. Emwazi's status isn't immediately unclear.
Nov. 13, 2015
U.S. officials overnight say they launched a drone strike targeting Jihadi John. Emwazi's status isn't immediately unclear.
Nov. 12, 2015
Kurdish Iraqi fighters launch a long-awaited offensive to retake the strategic town of Sinjar from the IS, severing a militant supply line. Islamic State militants also claim a nighttime bombing in Beirut killing at least 43 people.
lessNov. 12, 2015
Kurdish Iraqi fighters launch a long-awaited offensive to retake the strategic town of Sinjar from the IS, severing a militant supply line. Islamic State militants also claim a nighttime bombing in
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Oct. 31, 2015
A Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, killing 224 people. An IS affiliate claims responsibility. U.S. and British officials later say it's likely a bomb brought the plane down.
lessOct. 31, 2015
A Russian passenger plane crashes in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, killing 224 people. An IS affiliate claims responsibility. U.S. and British officials later say it's likely a bomb brought the plane
... more
Sept. 30, 2015
Russia, an ally of Syria's embattled president, begins airstrikes it says target the Islamic State group and other extremists in Syria. The West maintains the campaign is bolstering Assad against his foes.
lessSept. 30, 2015
Russia, an ally of Syria's embattled president, begins airstrikes it says target the Islamic State group and other extremists in Syria. The West maintains the campaign is bolstering Assad against
... more
Aug. 5, 2015
An affiliate of the Islamic State group threatens to kill Croatian hostage Tomislav Salopek in 48 hours unless Egypt releases "Muslim women" it holds in prison.
Aug. 12
Salopek was executed
Sept. 10
The Islamic State group claims to hold Norwegian Ole Johan Grimsgaard-Ofstad and Chinese consultant Fan Jinghui as hostages and demands a ransom for their release.
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Aug. 5, 2015
An affiliate of the Islamic State group threatens to kill Croatian hostage Tomislav Salopek in 48 hours unless Egypt releases "Muslim women" it holds in prison.
Aug. 12
Salopek was executed
Sept.
... more
Photo: Uncredited, Associated Press
July 23, 2015
Turkey agrees to let the United States launch airstrikes against the Islamic State group from its strategic Incirlik Air Base. Turkey later begins striking Islamic State targets in Syria, as well as Kurdish forces it considers a threat.
lessJuly 23, 2015
Turkey agrees to let the United States launch airstrikes against the Islamic State group from its strategic Incirlik Air Base. Turkey later begins striking Islamic State targets in Syria, as well
... more
June 16, 2015
Kurds take the crucial Syrian border town of Tal Abyad from the Islamic State group.
June 16, 2015
Kurds take the crucial Syrian border town of Tal Abyad from the Islamic State group.
May 17, 2015
The contested Iraqi city of Ramadi falls to the Islamic State group as Iraqi forces abandon their weapons and armored vehicles and flee, despite intensified U.S.-led airstrikes.
May 17, 2015
The contested Iraqi city of Ramadi falls to the Islamic State group as Iraqi forces abandon their weapons and armored vehicles and flee, despite intensified U.S.-led airstrikes.
April 19, 2015
Islamic State affiliates in Libya release a video showing them behead and shoot dead groups of Ethiopian Christians, slayings resembling the February beheadings of the Egyptian Coptic Christians.
April 19, 2015
Islamic State affiliates in Libya release a video showing them behead and shoot dead groups of Ethiopian Christians, slayings resembling the February beheadings of the Egyptian Coptic Christians.
April 18, 2015
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani blames the Islamic State group for a suicide bombing in the country that kills at least 35 people and wounds 125.
April 18, 2015
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani blames the Islamic State group for a suicide bombing in the country that kills at least 35 people and wounds 125.
April 1, 2015
Iraq declares a "magnificent victory" over the Islamic State group in Tikrit, its biggest gain yet against the militants.
April 1, 2015
Iraq declares a "magnificent victory" over the Islamic State group in Tikrit, its biggest gain yet against the militants.
March 25, 2015
The U.S.-led coalition begins airstrikes on Tikrit after Iraqi efforts to take the city stall. Shiite militias pull out of Iraqi forces in protest, but later rejoin the offensive.
March 25, 2015
The U.S.-led coalition begins airstrikes on Tikrit after Iraqi efforts to take the city stall. Shiite militias pull out of Iraqi forces in protest, but later rejoin the offensive.
Photo: Khalid Mohammed, AP
March 20, 2015
An emerging IS affiliate in Yemen claims a series of suicide bombings killing 137 people and wounding 345. A Saudi-led war in Yemen against Shiite rebels there slowly draws away Arab support for the U.S. anti-IS campaign.
lessMarch 20, 2015
An emerging IS affiliate in Yemen claims a series of suicide bombings killing 137 people and wounding 345. A Saudi-led war in Yemen against Shiite rebels there slowly draws away Arab support for
... more
March 11, 2015
Iraqi troops and allied Shiite militiamen enter the Islamic State-held city of Tikrit, backed by Iranian advisers and forgoing the air support of the U.S.-led coalition.
March 11, 2015
Iraqi troops and allied Shiite militiamen enter the Islamic State-held city of Tikrit, backed by Iranian advisers and forgoing the air support of the U.S.-led coalition.
Feb. 16, 2015
Egypt launches airstrikes in Libya in retaliation for the beheadings.
Feb. 16, 2015
Egypt launches airstrikes in Libya in retaliation for the beheadings.
Feb. 15
Libyan militants who earlier pledged their loyalty to the Islamic State group behead a group of Coptic Christians from Egypt in an online video.
Feb. 15
Libyan militants who earlier pledged their loyalty to the Islamic State group behead a group of Coptic Christians from Egypt in an online video.
Feb. 15, 2015.
Libyan militants who earlier pledged their loyalty to the Islamic State group behead a group of Coptic Christians from Egypt in an online video.
Feb. 15, 2015.
Libyan militants who earlier pledged their loyalty to the Islamic State group behead a group of Coptic Christians from Egypt in an online video.
Feb. 6, 2015
The Islamic State group claims a Jordanian airstrike kills American hostage Kayla Jean Mueller. U.S. officials later confirm her death, but say it wasn't caused by a Jordanian airstrike.
Feb. 6, 2015
The Islamic State group claims a Jordanian airstrike kills American hostage Kayla Jean Mueller. U.S. officials later confirm her death, but say it wasn't caused by a Jordanian airstrike.
Feb. 3, 2015
The Islamic State group releases a video of it burning al-Kaseasbeh to death in a cage, sparking outrage in Jordan, which launches new strikes targeting the militants.
Feb. 3, 2015
The Islamic State group releases a video of it burning al-Kaseasbeh to death in a cage, sparking outrage in Jordan, which launches new strikes targeting the militants.
Jan. 31
The Islamic State group releases video saying it beheaded Goto.
Jan. 31
The Islamic State group releases video saying it beheaded Goto.
Jan. 26, 2015
Kurdish fighters take control of the Syrian border town of Kobani near Turkey after fighting the Islamic State group for months. U.S.-led airstrikes helped turn the tide for the Kurds.
Jan. 26, 2015
Kurdish fighters take control of the Syrian border town of Kobani near Turkey after fighting the Islamic State group for months. U.S.-led airstrikes helped turn the tide for the Kurds.
Jan. 24, 2015
A message claims the Islamic State group beheads Japanese hostage Haruna Yukawa, right, a 42-year-old adventurer, after earlier demanding $200 million for him and captive Japanese journalist Kenji Goto. Japanese and Jordanian officials attempt to negotiate a prisoner swap to free him and captured Jordanian pilot 1st Lt. Mu'ath al-Kaseasbeh.
lessJan. 24, 2015
A message claims the Islamic State group beheads Japanese hostage Haruna Yukawa, right, a 42-year-old adventurer, after earlier demanding $200 million for him and captive Japanese journalist Kenji
... more
Jan. 10, 2015
An online video shows Taliban fighters in Pakistan pledge loyalty to the Islamic State group and behead a man they identify as a soldier. Similar pledges previously arose from Egypt, Yemen and elsewhere in the Mideast. Afghan authorities later acknowledge a similar presence in their country.
lessJan. 10, 2015
An online video shows Taliban fighters in Pakistan pledge loyalty to the Islamic State group and behead a man they identify as a soldier. Similar pledges previously arose from Egypt, Yemen and
... more
Nov. 16, 2014
An Islamic State group video shows extremists behead a dozen Syrian soldiers and U.S. aid worker Peter Kassig.
Nov. 16, 2014
An Islamic State group video shows extremists behead a dozen Syrian soldiers and U.S. aid worker Peter Kassig.
Nov. 8, 2014
Iraqi officials say al-Baghdadi is wounded in an airstrike on an Iraqi town near the Syrian border. Days later, an online audio message purportedly from al-Baghdadi urges his followers to "explode the volcanoes of jihad everywhere."
lessNov. 8, 2014
Iraqi officials say al-Baghdadi is wounded in an airstrike on an Iraqi town near the Syrian border. Days later, an online audio message purportedly from al-Baghdadi urges his followers to "explode
... more
Oct. 3, 2014
The Islamic State group releases a video showing a jihadi behead British hostage Alan Henning.
Oct. 3, 2014
The Islamic State group releases a video showing a jihadi behead British hostage Alan Henning.
Photo: Family Handout, HONS
Sept. 13, 2014
The Islamic State group releases a video showing a jihadi behead British aid worker David Haines.
Sept. 13, 2014
The Islamic State group releases a video showing a jihadi behead British aid worker David Haines.
Photo: Associated Press
Sept. 2, 2014
The Islamic State group releases a video showing a jihadi behead American-Israeli journalist Steven Sotloff.
Sept. 2, 2014
The Islamic State group releases a video showing a jihadi behead American-Israeli journalist Steven Sotloff.
Photo: HO, Handout
Aug. 19, 2014
The Islamic State group releases a video showing a jihadi behead James Foley, a 40-year-old journalist from Rochester, New Hampshire, in response to the U.S.-led airstrikes. This marks the first of many videos showing militants behead Western captives.
lessAug. 19, 2014
The Islamic State group releases a video showing a jihadi behead James Foley, a 40-year-old journalist from Rochester, New Hampshire, in response to the U.S.-led airstrikes. This marks the first of
... more
Aug. 8, 2014
The U.S. begins targeting the Islamic State group with airstrikes, citing the humanitarian plight of Iraq's minorities, like the Yazidi.
Aug. 8, 2014
The U.S. begins targeting the Islamic State group with airstrikes, citing the humanitarian plight of Iraq's minorities, like the Yazidi.
Photo: Tech. Sgt. Russ Scalf, HOPD
June 29, 2014
The group declares the establishment of an Islamic state, or caliphate, in territories it controls in Iraq and Syria and demands allegiance from Muslims worldwide. It declares al-Baghdadi the leader of the new caliphate. The militants rename themselves the Islamic State group.
July 5, 2014
A man purporting to be al-Baghdadi makes his first public appearance, delivering a sermon at a mosque in Mosul.
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June 29, 2014
The group declares the establishment of an Islamic state, or caliphate, in territories it controls in Iraq and Syria and demands allegiance from Muslims worldwide. It declares al-Baghdadi the
... more
Photo: Uncredited, Associated Press
June 10, 2014
Al-Baghdadi's fighters take over Iraq's second-largest city of Mosul, followed by Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit and smaller communities in the Sunni heartland as government forces melt away.
June 10, 2014
Al-Baghdadi's fighters take over Iraq's second-largest city of Mosul, followed by Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit and smaller communities in the Sunni heartland as government forces melt away.
Photo: Uncredited, AP
Early February 2014
Al-Qaida breaks with al-Baghdadi's group, now known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. Al-Baghdadi ignores al-Qaida as his group now has control of wide regions of Syria, including the city of Raqqa, which becomes the group's de facto capital.
lessEarly February 2014
Al-Qaida breaks with al-Baghdadi's group, now known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. Al-Baghdadi ignores al-Qaida as his group now has control of wide regions of Syria, including
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January 2014
Al-Baghdadi's forces sweep into Ramadi and Fallujah in Iraq's Anbar province, which Iraqi security forces had abandoned weeks earlier. That came after security forces killed demonstrators during a Sunni protest, effectively turning the unrest into an uprising.
lessJanuary 2014
Al-Baghdadi's forces sweep into Ramadi and Fallujah in Iraq's Anbar province, which Iraqi security forces had abandoned weeks earlier. That came after security forces killed demonstrators during a
... more
July 2013
A military-style assault by al-Baghdadi's fighters on two Baghdad-area prisons free more than 500 inmates.
July 2013
A military-style assault by al-Baghdadi's fighters on two Baghdad-area prisons free more than 500 inmates.
Photo: Karim Kadim, AP
April 2013
Al-Baghdadi announces his group has taken over the Nusra Front, the al-Qaida affiliate in Syria. Nusra denies the takeover, sparking anger and infighting that continues to this day.
April 2013
Al-Baghdadi announces his group has taken over the Nusra Front, the al-Qaida affiliate in Syria. Nusra denies the takeover, sparking anger and infighting that continues to this day.
Oct. 4, 2011The U.S. puts a $10 million bounty on al-Baghdadi's head over a series of attacks he orchestrated.
July 21, 2012
In his first purported online message, al-Baghdadi promises to regain lost ground in Iraq and calls on militants to "chase and liquidate the judges, the investigators and the guards." Within days, his group begins a campaign of attacks, car bombings and other assaults killing hundreds. He also mentions Syria, in the grips of a civil war pitting largely Sunni rebels against embattled President Bashar Assad. By this time, al-Baghdadi already has begun to send fighters there.
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Oct. 4, 2011
The U.S. puts a $10 million bounty on al-Baghdadi's head over a series of attacks he orchestrated.
July 21, 2012
In his first purported online message, al-Baghdadi promises to regain lost ground in
... more
Photo: U.S. State Department
Oct. 31, 2010
Al-Baghdadi's al-Qaida militants attack Our Lady of Salvation Catholic church in Baghdad during Sunday night mass, killing 58 people in the deadliest assault targeting Christians since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion there. The militants reportedly demand the release of Muslim women they claim were held by Egypt's Coptic Christian church.
lessOct. 31, 2010
Al-Baghdadi's al-Qaida militants attack Our Lady of Salvation Catholic church in Baghdad during Sunday night mass, killing 58 people in the deadliest assault targeting Christians since the 2003
... more
U.S. and Iraqi forces kill two top al-Qaida in Iraq leaders, allowing al-Baghdadi to become the leader of a terror group weakened by a concerted campaign aimed at ending a Sunni insurgency in the country.
Click through the rest of the photos to see a timeline of the Islamic State Group
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U.S. and Iraqi forces kill two top al-Qaida in Iraq leaders, allowing al-Baghdadi to become the leader of a terror group weakened by a concerted campaign aimed at ending a Sunni insurgency in the
... more
Photo: Uncredited, HOEP
Houston ISIS supporter's crime was his intention, judge says in doling out 16 year sentence
Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan admitted he associated with jihadis, swore an oath to Islamic State terrorists, lied on a passport application and stockpiled materials to make remote detonators at his west Houston apartment. And he discussed decapitating Americans for the cause.
But he drew the line at bombs.
"I am not a bombmaker," the defendant told a federal judge. "I have no experience with electronics."
U.S. District Judge Lynn N. Hughes said it was his intent, and not his skillset, that qualified the Iraqi born refugee for 16 years in prison. The judge explained the sentence was for "what you planned and attempted to do, however inept you may have been at executing that plan."
"Clumsy bombmakers, stupid planners have killed a lot of people," the judge added.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ted Imperato asked Hughes to give him a 20-year term based on sentences that had been given to other U.S. defendants convicted of making plans to go overseas for ISIS.
However, defense attorney David Adler asked the judge to stay within sentencing guidelines.
Al Hardan, 25, is a Palestinian who came to the U.S. as a refugee in 2009. He was able to become a legal permanent resident, and lived in Houston and Dallas where he cared for his medically compromised parents, and had a wife and a child. To earn money, he drove an Uber and performed state inspections on cars.
But that wasn't all he did.
"He made some very bad decisions," his attorney Adler acknowledged, but said he had been isolated from society at the time.
Isolated from society
The Houston refugee was ultimately snared as a result of various conversations he had, including with informants the FBI had introduced. He also participated in training with a fully automatic AK-47 at a remote location near Houston.
Since he was jailed two years ago, Al Hardan had developed an appreciation of how fortunate he and his family were to settle in the U.S., Adler said. Before, Al Hardan "had very little contact outside his family, very little contact with English-speaking Americans and that led him to believe a lot of things he saw online that he no longer believes," the lawyer said.
Adler said his client had strong support from his parents and wife, but his family had chosen to stay away from the sentencing to avoid media attention.
Al Hardan is one of three Houston-area men and eight defendants statewide who have been charged with plans to support ISIS, according to Seamus Hughes, an expert on ISIS cases at George Washington University's Program on Extremism. The program has tracked 149 people charged in 28 states and the District of Colombia since March of 2014 with attempting or providing material support to ISIS, which in many cases means an allegation of offering up oneself for the cause.
Those accused of becoming radicalized come from an array of ethnic, social, economic and educational backgrounds, according to Hughes' analysis. The nearly 90 defendants who have pleaded guilty have been given prison terms of 13.5 years on average. Some defendants have been charged with attempting to join the jihadist fight overseas and others with trying to organize attacks on U.S. soil.
Al Hardan, a Palestinian born in Iraq who had lived in refugee camps in Iraq and Jordan, had contemplated both avenues of material support while living in Houston, according to court records. He was indicted on Jan. 6, 2016, on allegations he had offered himself up to ISIS as an explosive expert, hoping he could go overseas and join the terrorist cause.
During testimony at a detention hearing, an agent from Homeland Security Investigations mentioned Al Hardan had talked about bombing a military base in Grand Prairie. The agent said the defendant discussed with an informant steps he would take to he would carry out a local attack - including disguising his appearance.
When investigators searched his home, they confiscated circuitry components, a soldering iron, wireless remotes and several unactivated cellphones in the west Houston apartment where he lived with his parents, 18-year-old wife and infant son.
He pleaded guilty on Oct. 17, 2016, to attempting to provide support to ISIS.
Years of planning
According to court documents, Al Hardan communicated online in April 2013 with Aws Mohammed Younis Al-Jayab, an Al-Nusra recruit in Sacramento who is charged with related federal offenses in California and Illinois. Al-Jayab said he'd been to the front and wanted to return. Al Hardan said he wanted to go with him.
But while Al Hardan's communication with Al-Jayab and two Al-Nusra leaders petered out, he continued buying bombmaking materials on eBay and made multiple statements that he wanted to be a martyr for the ISIS cause, according to his plea.
In one social media post, he stated, "I want to blow myself up. I want to travel with the Mujahidin. I want to travel to be with those who are against America. I am against America."
In June 2014, the FBI introduced a confidential source who met in person with Al Hardan 17 times, according to court documents. The pair discussed going overseas to engage in activities Al Hardan knew were considered in terrorism by the U.S. government.
In November 2014, he met with the source and swore a loyalty oath, according to court documents.
Two days after that meeting they met for a one-hour tactical training in a remote area outside Houston, where Al Hardan practiced with a fully automatic AK-47. He told this source in 2014 and early 2015 that he wanted to learn to use cellphones as detonators to set off improvised bombs abroad for ISIS. He told the informant he would train using online videos and a manual he had obtained on a CD, according to his plea. He also showed the source a circuit board he built to be used as a remote detonator.
On Aug. 18, 2014, Al Hardan checked the box on an application to become a naturalized U.S. citizen indicating that he didn't associate with any terrorist organizations, according to court documents. But from the time of his application until 2015, he continued to buy electronic components to make circuitry and the tools to assemble bomb detonators.
Crime was 'checking that box'
After nearly two years in federal detention, Al Hardan appeared in court Monday in an olive green jail uniform, his hair parted and slicked back. He wore earphones to hear the Arabic court translator.
Judge Hughes gave him a chance to speak, but questioned him throughout the sentencing.
"I want to apologize for the wrong I've done," he told the judge in accented English, reading from notes, saying he had been "foolish" and he would never do it again.
"I didn't plan to attack any place or plan to hurt someone," he said, emphasizing that the informant had been the one who suggested specific places to attack. "Your honor, I'm not trying to make any excuses, but I didn't plan to hurt nobody."
"Did you vehemently disassociate yourself from that suggestion?" the judge asked.
Al Hardan's lawyer jumped in, saying it was a mistake for his client not to end contact immediately with the informant.
The judge said it wasn't a crime to say stupid or violent things on social media "or we'd have to fill half the country with prisons," he said.
People are free to own an ISIS flag, they're free to watch videos about making bombs and improvised devices, the judge noted. Al Hardan's crime was in checking that box, lying on his passport so he could carry out his plan to go to Syria and be a bombmaker for ISIS. It was planning and training.
Al Hardan was ordered to serve 16 years in prison followed by a lifetime of supervised release, if immigration authorities allow him to remain in the country.
http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Palestinian-ISIS-supporter-given-16-years-12440352.php
