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Terror suspect charged with treason

The Calif. man is accused of being an al-Qaida operative.

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published October 12, 2006

LOS ANGELES - The charge of treason was used for the first time in the United States' war on terrorism Wednesday, filed against a California man who appeared in videos for al-Qaida.

Adam Yehiye Gadahn, 28, could be sentenced to death if convicted of the charge, which has been used only a few dozen times in U.S. history and not at all since the World War II era. He also was indicted on a charge of providing material support to terrorists.

Gadahn "knowingly adhered to an enemy of the United States, namely, al-Qaida, and gave al-Qaida aid and comfort ... with intent to betray the United States," according to the indictment, handed up by an Orange County grand jury.

Gadahn, accused of being an al-Qaida operative, has been sought by the FBI since 2004. Based on the indictment, the FBI added Gadahn to its list of most wanted terrorists and offered a $1-million reward for his arrest or conviction.

Gadahn, believed to be in or near Pakistan, is suspected of having attended the terrorist group's training camps in Pakistan and serving as one of its translators. He has become known as Azzam al-Amriki, or "Azzam the American."

Gadahn appeared last month in a 48-minute video along with al-Qaida's No. 2 leader, Ayman al-Zawahri, calling on his countrymen to convert to Islam and for U.S. soldiers to switch sides in the Iraq and Afghan wars.

[Last modified October 12, 2006, 01:31:32]