Afghan man pleads guilty to plotting New York subway attack
Afghan man pleads guilty to plotting New York subway attack
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By inthenews. |  |
Tuesday, 23, Feb 2010 09:08
By Richard James.
An Afghan man has pleaded guilty to plotting a bomb attack on New York's subway system in protest against American military operations in Afghanistan.
Najibullah Zazi, 25, also admitted in a federal court on Monday to receiving bomb-making and weapons training from al-Qaida in Pakistan's Waziristan region.
He told the court the plan had been to conduct a "martyrdom operation" around the eighth anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks.
"I would sacrifice myself to bring attention to what the US military was doing to civilians in Afghanistan," Zazi told the court.
Having originally pleaded not guilty, he changed his plea to plead guilty to conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction, conspiracy to commit murder in a foreign country and providing material support for a terrorist organisation.
The US attorney general Eric Holder said the planned attack "could have been devastating", adding: "This attempted attack on our homeland was real, it was in motion, and it would have been deadly."
The US department of justice said Zazi flew out to Pakistan in 2008 with a view to fighting for the Taliban. However, he was reportedly recruited by al-Qaida on the Afghan border.
He admitted to driving from Colorado to New York in September 2009 with materials to build the bombs. US authorities though claim the 25-year-old was under surveillance throughout his trip.
At least four other suspects have been charged in connection with the case, the al-Jazeera news agency reports.