Political India: Engaging America

Rezwan Ferdaus (26) of Ashland, Massachusetts, pleaded not guilty to charges that he planned to bomb the Pentagon and Capitol building using miniature “drone” aircraft laden with C-4 explosive. He also hoped to launch a Mumbai-style ground assault with a team of six men, according to court documents.

Formal charges

The formal charges against Ferdaus, a physics graduate of Northeastern University who was also rock band drummer nicknamed “Bollywood,” included attempting to provide material support and resources to al-Qaeda with the aim of facilitating attacks on U.S. soldiers overseas; attempting to destroy national defence premises; and attempting to destroy buildings owned by the U.S. using explosives.

Ferdaus was arrested by FBI agents last week at the culmination of what appeared to be a lengthy sting operation. Undercover officers supplied Ferdaus with an unspecified amount of what he thought was C-4 explosive, an F-86 small drone aircraft, three grenades and six fully-automatic AK-47 assault rifles.

Delayed for weeks

Ferdaus' bail hearing was said to have been delayed for several weeks after his lawyer, Catherine Byrne, requested more time to prepare his defence. Ms. Byrne said the prosecution's case was “orchestrated and facilitated by the government,” adding that Ferdaus' legal team had asked for additional time to “present a more complete picture of what happened”.

According to reports, a group of nearly a dozen family members and friends attended Ferdaus' court appearance. Several women, including his mother, were said to have wept as the charges against him were read, shouting “We love you!” as he was led out of the courtroom; and he quietly answered, “I love you, too.”

More information

More information on Ferdaus' background also emerged since his arrest last week, with prosecutors, former classmates, and religious leaders describing Ferdaus as “someone who went from playing the drums, quoting [Mahatma] Gandhi, and promoting peace to decrying conversations between men and women, criticising interfaith efforts, and calling for the death of any... nonbeliever.”

Further Ferdaus was reportedly told to leave this mosque because of his radical behaviour. Atif Harden, a spokesperson for the Islamic Society of Boston Cultural Center in Boston where Ferdaus prayed, was quoted as saying, “He was rare. No one has ever in our mosque said ‘Oh yeah, [al Qaeda] are wonderful' except him.”

The use of model aircraft as terror weapons has also received some attention following Ferdaus' arrest, since there are no restrictions on their purchase, and others could obtain them as easily on the Internet as Ferdaus did.

However counterterrorism experts and model-aircraft hobbyists reportedly said, “It would be nearly impossible to inflict large-scale damage of the sort Ferdaus allegedly envisioned [because] the aircraft are too small, can't carry enough explosives and are too tricky to fly.”