Information on Chattanooga shooter Mohammad Youssef Abdulazeez appears to indicate that today’s attack was yet another case of what I have termed “known wolf” terrorism — where suspects already known to law enforcement authorities as threats end up committing acts of terror.
Benny Johnson at IJ Review reports:
Pentagon Source: Mohammad Youssef Abdulazeez was on the global intel watch-list and his accounts had been flagged for radical behavior.
— Benny (@bennyjohnson) July 16, 2015
If in fact Abdulazeez was on not just U.S. watch lists, but also international, this is just the most recent episode of an international breakdown by law enforcement authorities.
As I’ve documented here at PJ Media for nearly a year, virtually all of the terror attacks in the West in recent years have been committed by individuals already known to be potential threats:
Oct. 24, 2014: ‘Lone Wolf’ or ‘Known Wolf’: The Ongoing Counter-Terrorism Failure
Dec. 15, 2014: Sydney Hostage Taker Another Case of ‘Known Wolf’ Syndrome
Jan. 7, 2015: Paris Terror Attack Yet Another Case of ‘Known Wolf’ Syndrome
Feb. 3, 2015: French Police Terror Attacker Yesterday Another Case of ‘Known Wolf’ Syndrome
Feb. 15, 2015: Copenhagen Killer Was yet Another Case of ‘Known Wolf’ Terrorism
Feb. 26, 2015: Islamic State Beheader ‘Jihadi John’ Yet Another Case of ‘Known Wolf’ Terrorism
Apr. 22, 2015: Botched Attack on Paris Churches Another Case of “Known Wolf” Terrorism
May 4, 2015:Texas Attack Is Yet Another Case of ‘Known Wolf’ Terrorism
June 26, 2015: France’s Beheading Terrorist Was Well-Known By Authorities
This was also the subject of a Capitol Hill briefing I gave back in late January sponsored by the Endowment for Middle East Truth (EMET):
How many more “known wolf” terror attacks will need to occur before anyone in Congress begins to notice and ask questions?
UPDATE: Feds denying?
7 p.m.
A United States official says there’s no indication that the suspected Chattanooga gunman was under investigation by the FBI or on the radar of federal law enforcement at the time of the shooting.
The official was briefed on the investigation but was not authorized to discuss an ongoing investigation and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Suspected #Chattanooga gunman wasn't in U.S. databases of suspected terrorists, officials say. http://t.co/60ljXtZdvS.
— CNN Breaking News (@cnnbrk) July 17, 2015
UPDATE2: The plot thickens…
Law enforcement official: Abdulazeez's father once on a terror watch-list, under investigation by fed. authorities. pic.twitter.com/PA4zKIaSch
— Fox News (@FoxNews) July 17, 2015
UPDATE3: More — anonymous — denials from Fed sources:
Official: No indication Abdulazeez was on radar of federal law enforcement before shootings http://t.co/Dd9w3eIbjM pic.twitter.com/fM0ZQL9eU9
— knoxnews (@knoxnews) July 17, 2015
Join the conversation as a VIP Member