Jehad Mostafa
Jehad Serwan Mostafa | |
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Born | December 28th, 1981 Waukesha, United States |
Nationality | American |
Other names | Emir Anwar, Ahmed Gurey, Anwar al-Amriki, Ahmed, Anwar, Abu Abdullah al-Muhajir |
Height | 6 ft 1 in (185 cm) |
Criminal charge(s) | Conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists, conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization, providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization |
Jehad Serwan Mostafa (16 December 1981) is an American-born, Somalian alleged terrorist affiliated with the Jihadist group al Shabaab. Mostafa has been listed on the FBI Most Wanted List since 2011 due to his purported elevated position and prolific activity within al Shabaab.
Biography[]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/YoungJM.jpg/100px-YoungJM.jpg)
Jehad Serwan Mostafa was born on December 16, 1981, in Waukesha, Wisconsin to a Kurdish man named Halim Mostafa and an anonymous mother, yet was raised and earned a degree in economics in San Diego, California.[2][3][4][5] In his youth, he served as the head of the Muslim Youth Council of San Diego and later became a security guard under the California Bureau of Security and Investigative Services.[3] Mostafa was born left handed with a noteworthy scar on his right hand.[4][6] During his time in San Diego, he was described as "very kind, very peaceful, very patient" and as "not scary or aggressive".[7]
In 2005, at the age of twenty-four, Mostafa traveled to Yemen before further traveling to live in Somalia where he joined the Jihadist militant group al Shabaab.[8][6][3] Mostafa swiftly rose up the ranks of the group, serving as an explosives expert, propaganda expert, military instructor, and interpreter for the organization.[8][4][1] He rose to a height in prominence within the organization in 2009 and is currently believed to be the number one most influential United States citizen partnered with an overseas terrorist organization.[3][5][2]
Mostafa is often referred to under the pseudonyms Emir Anwar, Ahmed Gurey, Anwar al-Amriki, Ahmed, Anwar, and Abu Abdullah al-Muhajir.[4] According to an unnamed security force, he has three wives in Somalia, one being a widow of a former al Shabaab member, and an estimated sixteen children. According to the same source, he narrowly evaded capture in a ground operation around 2018.[9]
Criminal Charges[]
On October 9, 2009, Mostafa was charged by the United States with conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists, conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization, and providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization.[6][8] In 2011, Mostafa was added to the FBI Most Wanted List.[5] In 2013, The United States Department of State offered a five million dollar reward to any individuals willing to divulge information surrounding Mostafa's whereabouts.[8]
References[]
- ^ a b "Wanted by the FBI: Jehad Serwan Mostafa". Federal Bureau of Investigation.
- ^ a b Spagat, Elliot (2 December 2019). "US citizen raised in San Diego Faces New Terrorism Charges". AP News.
- ^ a b c d "Jehad Serwan Mostafa". Counter Extremism Project.
- ^ a b c d "MOST WANTED - JEHAD SERWAN MOSTAFA". Federal Bureau of Investigation.
- ^ a b c "Rewards for Fugitives - Jehad Serwan Mostafa". Voice of America.
- ^ a b c "Wanted - Information That Brings to Justice Jehad Serwan Mostafa". Rewards for Justice.
- ^ Krueger, Paul (6 August 2010). "Accused Terrorist Was "Kind, Peaceful Man:" Friends". NBC San Diego.
- ^ a b c d "Indictment Unsealed Charging Former San Diego Resident Jehad Serwan Mostafa with Providing Material Support to Militant Islamic Terrorist Organization Al-Shabaab". United States Department of Justice.
- ^ "Who is the FBI's most wanted American terrorist? Meet Jehad Serwan Mostafa". Fox News.
- 1981 births
- Living people
- Al-Shabaab (militant group)
- FBI: Most Wanted
- Somalia