FBI investigating whether Chattanooga attack inspired by Islamic State

Muhammad Youssef Abdulazeez, 24, attacked two military facilities with an arsenal of weapons before dying in a shootout. He was born in Kuwait but lived near Chattanooga, and was a naturalised American who had graduated with an engineering degree. Abdulazeez, who was a driving a silver Ford Mustang convertible, first pulled up to a recruitment centre in a strip mall and sprayed bullets at the glass doors. He then drove the sports car seven miles to a Navy and Marine training centre where he rammed it into a gate and opened fire.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/11745612/FBI-investigating-whether-Chattanooga-attack-inspired-by-Islamic-State.html


So what would drive a person who has no wrongs done to his nation of birth where in fact the US came to rescue his nation of birth from oppression? No wrongs have been done, which leaves only one connection.

Islam

The Federal authorities are stressing that they know of nothing that connects the Chattanooga shootings to the ISIL. They are specifically calling it an act of "domestic terrorism", such as we understand to be associated with the KKK, white supremacists and Christian movements. It's another event like Sandy Hook, Aurora or Columbine, so far as is known.

CNN wrote:Authorities "have not determined whether it was an act of terrorism or whether it was a criminal act," Ed Reinhold, FBI special agent in charge, told reporters. "We are looking at every possible avenue, whether it was terrorism -- whether it was domestic, international -- or whether it was a simple, criminal act."

The question only comes up because the perp is Mohammad Youssuf Abdulazeez--obviously a Muslim name--and was born in Kuwait and had Jordanian citizenship. However, he was a naturalized U.S. citizen.

From his blog, it does look like he became "radicalized" (such a simplistic term for a complicated personality change).

Should be noted that more than 1 in 50 Americans is Muslim. Obviously most of them find ways to practice their religion without being murderers.

Ben_Reilly wrote:From his blog, it does look like he became "radicalized" (such a simplistic term for a complicated personality change).

Should be noted that more than 1 in 50 Americans is Muslim. Obviously most of them find ways to practice their religion without being murderers.

I agree most of them practice their faith based on adhering US law. The point is just like with Evangelical Christianity, as is found within Islam, they preach a higher law, one not governed by common sense, but one that requires blind faith. The problem starts with one central issue, that he was a Muslim. He made a choice to kill others not Muslims because he was persuaded to treat others as enemies of his faith and a threat that must be neutralized. It is a belief system found in both faiths that can deny ethical reasoning. It allows believers to see think they are superior to others based on their beliefs, and that anything that challenges that is a threat. There is no other rational explanation that allows people to kill, based on no actual wrong done to them and only a a supposed wrong carried out on someones else of that faith. It bands people together to ignore humanity and act as if their belief is more valid than the sanctity of life.

Didge wrote:He made a choice to kill others not Muslims because he was persuaded to treat others as enemies of his faith and a threat that must be neutralized.

At this point the FBI denies this.  They have stated that they've seen no connection between his faith and the murders.

Didge wrote:There is no other rational explanation that allows people to kill, based on no actual wrong done to them and only a a supposed wrong carried out on someones else of that faith.

Sure there is.  I can think of a couple of dozen, although there is no evidence of any one of them.  He might be disgruntled because he couldn't join the Navy.  Perhaps he wanted to be a Marine.  It might have been road rage...perhaps a Marine cut him off and he followed him to the recruitment center.  On the other hand, perhaps his father was insisting that he join the military now that he had completed university...perhaps he, on the other hand, wanted to go to graduate school.  Law school.  Or, Dental School.  Indeed, perhaps he wanted to go to OCS, and the recruiters were unwilling to admit him as an officer candidate.

Had I to decide, the religion of a Muslim or Christian would be the last thing I would think of, absent specific evidence.  I would guess something to do with his career, more likely.

Perhaps we'll know more when we learn what he did during seven months he spent in Jordan last year. He might just have been with family, maybe not.

Original Quill wrote:

Didge wrote:He made a choice to kill others not Muslims because he was persuaded to treat others as enemies of his faith and a threat that must be neutralized.

At this point the FBI denies this.  They have stated that they've seen no connection between his faith and the murders.

Didge wrote:There is no other rational explanation that allows people to kill, based on no actual wrong done to them and only a a supposed wrong carried out on someones else of that faith.

Sure there is.  I can think of a couple of dozen, although there is no evidence of any one of them.  He might be disgruntled because he couldn't join the Navy.  Perhaps he wanted to be a Marine.  It might have been road rage...perhaps a Marine cut him off and he followed him to the recruitment center.  On the other hand, perhaps his father was insisting that he join the military now that he had completed university...perhaps he, on the other hand, wanted to go to graduate school.  Law school.  Or, Dental School.  Indeed, perhaps he wanted to go to OCS, and the recruiters were unwilling to admit him as an officer candidate.

Had I to decide, the religion of a Muslim or Christian would be the last thing I would think of, absent specific evidence.  I would guess something to do with his career, more likely.

Perhaps we'll know more when we learn what he did during seven months he spent in Jordan last year.  He might just have been with family, maybe not.

Of course the FBI deny the faith having a connection due to sensitivities of Islam itself, that is not proving anything other than my point Quill
You are offering hearsay not reason Quill.
The only connection here is Islam
Its in his statements and reasoning.
You are offering nothing but a reason to deny the truth.
You forget the only thing here that has made him commit an act of violence here is Islam.
Again look at what has made him act here.
You have failed to offer reason.

Didge wrote:Of course the FBI deny the faith having a connection due to sensitivities of Islam itself, that is not proving anything other than my point Quill

There is nothing to prove.  The reality is that no facts have been offered to establish a motive.

Didge wrote:You are offering hearsay not reason Quill

Hearsay is unverified information heard or received from another, offered to establish the truth of a particular contention.  As my point is that there is no contention, there can be no hearsay.

Didge wrote:The only connection here is Islam
Its in his statements and reasoning.

Nonsense.  There are a whole universe of connections.  No reason exists to single out Islam as a motive in this incident.  

He apparently was a Muslim.  There are 1.57-billion Muslims in the world; are you going to contend that everything that every one of them does is solely because of Islam?  If so, you are simply making a meaningless, metaphysical statement, not offering a reason for a single event.

Didge wrote:You are offering nothing but a reason to deny the truth.

No truth has been established.  His motives are unknown.

Didge wrote:You forget the only thing here that has made him commit an act of violence here is Islam.
Again look at what has made him act here.
You have failed to offer reason.

Nothing has been in fact established as to his motive.  We may find something in the future, but at this point we are simply guessing.

You are substituting sophistry for reasoning.  The simple fact is that nothing has been established about the shooter's motive.  No twist of logic can turn nothing into something; that's alchemy.

Facts may eventually prove your contentions right, but we are not at that point, if ever, yet.

You are offering me the worst defense ever Quill based on absurd reasoning.
He was Muslims, his motives stem from supposed claims of wrongs done to fellow Muslims.
His target American Marines, people who have served in the Middle East where they have been stationed. Where the Islamists claim they rape and butcher Muslims.
The motive is simple. Revenege to nothihng that had been wronged to this person. The only wrong claimed done was to other Muslims.
The connection is 100% Islam, a brotherhood to treat other Muslims as if your own family.
His motives are well known, hate. A hate formed from believing he is a victim as a Muslim.
There is no other explanation.
His actions came off believeing wrongs done to other Muslims.
He set out to right a wrong not even done to him.
Islam was his motivation and belief he would be glorified for his actions as to him what he committed was righteous, sanctioned by religious drivel.
Stop even attempting to make the worst defense going, as you are.
Those 4 Marines would be alive today if not for this man being a Muslim corrupted with hate.

Didge wrote:He was Muslims, his motives stem from supposed claims of wrongs done to fellow Muslims.

The FBI claims that it has found no evidence of this. The FBI has his computer and all of his writings, etc. They have had days to look into the matter, yet they have no announcement of this sort to make. At this point they have a shooting, that's it.

The one possibility that remains to be looked into is his 7-month stay in Jordan. They are looking into this.

The FBI plays to senitivities Quill.
That is all you need to know, when faced with people understanding a religion.

Didge wrote:His target American Marines, people who have served in the Middle East where they have been stationed. Where the Islamists claim they rape and butcher Muslims.
The motive is simple. Revenege to nothihng that had been wronged to this person. The only wrong claimed done was to other Muslims.
The connection is 100% Islam, a brotherhood to treat other Muslims as if your own family.
His motives are well known, hate. A hate formed from believing he is a victim as a Muslim.
There is no other explanation.
His actions came off believeing wrongs done to other Muslims.
He set out to right a wrong not even done to him.
Islam was his motivation and belief he would be glorified for his actions as to him what he committed was righteous, sanctioned by religious drivel.
Stop even attempting to make the worst defense going, as you are.
Those 4 Marines would be alive today if not for this man being a Muslim corrupted with hate.

You seem to have an unjustified hatred for Muslims. You should perhaps seek some help, lest you end up shooting up some public place because the derangement got the better of you.

Have a good day, didge.

Poor reply Quill.
I have not hate for Muslims.
Argument sunk

Cuchulain wrote:The FBI plays to senitivities Quill.
That is all you need to know, when faced with people understanding a religion.

Nor is there any evidence that the FBI is hiding something. 'Playing to sensitivities' or not, no one has found anything. It's alchemy...you can't make something out of nothing.

Never claimed the FBI was hiding Quill.
You still struggle to grasp

Cuchulain wrote:Never claimed the FBI was hiding Quill.
You still struggle to grasp

No need. There's nothing to grasp.

Get some sleep, didge.

When a poster commands something you know that poster has lost the debate.
You conceeded Quill

Cuchulain wrote:When a poster commands something you know that poster has lost the debate.
You conceeded Quill

Does that make sense to you? You're drunk, didge. Sleep it off.

Original Quill wrote:

Cuchulain wrote:When a poster commands something you know that poster has lost the debate.
You conceeded Quill

Does that make sense to you?  You're drunk, didge.  Sleep it off.

Nothing to refute my points now you attempt poor deflections.
Grow up, its boring when you come out with crap like that, it proves you have lost the debate.
I am not going to waste my time if you act immature as you are doing now.

Once again have a good evening and learn some dignity when you are wrong.

On that I bid you a fond farewell

Cuchulain wrote:

Original Quill wrote:

Does that make sense to you?  You're drunk, didge.  Sleep it off.

Nothing to refute my points now you attempt poor deflections.
Grow up, its boring when you come out with crap like that, it proves you have lost the debate.
I am not going to waste my time if you act immature as you are doing now.

Once again have a good evening and learn some dignity when you are wrong.

On that I bid you a fond farewell

You haven't made any points.  I guess on the premise that the best defense is a good offensive, you have invented arguments in your own imagination and then declared yourself king.


Didge you're on a losing streak this weekend.  You're either on a weekend bender or you had a tough commute and have too much adrenaline left over.

Tenn. gunman used drugs, struggled with clash of faith

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — A few months before he killed five U.S. service members in a shooting rampage here, the 24-year-old gunman, who often joked that he was just an “Arabian redneck,” was smoking marijuana with friends.

It was getting late and Mohammad Youssef Abdulazeez had work the next morning at his new job some two hours away in Franklin, said a close friend who was with him that night and spent several hours with him in the days leading up to the shooting.

Abdulazeez dropped off a couple of his friends at their homes on the night in April, snorted some crushed caffeine pills and started to drive.

A little after 2 a.m., Abdulazeez was arrested for driving under the influence, according to court papers, an incident sharply at odds with blog posts in which he portrayed himself as a devout Muslim and his existence in this world a “prison of monotony and routine.”

The portrait emerging of Abdulazeez isn’t one of a committed Muslim or vengeful jihadist, but rather an aimless young man who came from a troubled home and struggled to hold down a job after college, said friends and law enforcement officials.

He never dated, the friend said.

In a statement, his family said Abdulazeez’s mental illness had contributed to the crime. “For many years, our son suffered from depression. It grieves us beyond belief to know that his pain found its expression in this heinous act of violence,” the statement said.

Abdulazeez had been in and out of treatment for his depression and frequently stopped taking his medication, despite his parents’ pleas for him to continue, said a person close to the family.

Abdulazeez smoked pot occasionally and then would feel guilty for violating his faith and beat himself up for it, said the close friend who has known Abdulazeez for 15 years and was recently questioned by the FBI. The friend, also a Muslim, spoke to The Washington Post on the condition of anonymity because he is concerned for his family’s privacy.

The friend said Abdulazeez was especially ashamed of his DUI arrest, which led to his mugshot being posted online and in Just Busted, a newspaper sold at local gas stations.

“He was pretty upset about it,” said the friend, who spoke with Abdulazeez almost daily in the weeks and days leading up to the shooting. “It was kind of degrading to him.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/chattanooga-shooter-an-aimless-young-man-who-smoked-dope-and-shot-guns/2015/07/18/c213f6a6-2d7d-11e5-a5ea-cf74396e59ec_story.html?postshare=4351437267697498


Looks like he had mental health problems.

Tennessee shooter was upset over Gaza war

Friend of Mohammod Youssuf Abdulazeez says gunman sent him a text hours before shooting in Chattanooga with a link to an Islamic verse that says: 'Whosoever shows enmity to a friend of Mine, then I have declared war against him'.


Friends of a gunman who killed killed five US servicemen in Tennessee said he was upset about Operation Protective Edge in Gaza last summer and the civil war in Syria.




The suspect, Mohammod Youssuf Abdulazeez, a 24-year-old Kuwaiti-born naturalized US citizen, was killed in a gunfight with police.

 

"He felt Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia were not doing enough to help, and that they were heavily influenced by the United States," said one friend.

 

Another friend said, "He had always talked about it, but I'd say his level of understanding and awareness really rose after he came back."




One of the friends received a text message from Abdulazeez hours before Thursday's attack in Chattanooga, a link to a long Islamic verse that included the line: "Whosoever shows enmity to a friend of Mine, then I have declared war against him."

 

The friend showed the text message to Reuters on Saturday. He said he thought nothing of the message at the time, but now wonders if it was a hint at Thursday's attack in Chattanooga.

 

The FBI is investigating the shooting as an act of terrorism, but said it was premature to speculate on the gunman's motive.

 

The rampage has re-ignited concerns about the radicalization of young Muslim men. Abdulazeez's friends said he returned from a trip to Jordan in 2014 concerned about conflicts in the Middle East and the reluctance of the United States and other countries to intervene.

 
After the trip, he purchased three assault rifles on an online marketplace and used them for target practice, the friends said.
 
"He expressed that he was upset about (the Middle East). But I can't imagine it drove him to this," said the friend who received the text message.
 
Authorities said Abdulazeez sprayed gunfire at a joint military recruiting center in a strip mall in Chattanooga, then drove to a Naval Reserve Center about 6 miles (10 km) away, where he killed four Marines before he himself was shot dead.
 
Three other people were injured, including a US Navy petty officer who died from his wounds on Saturday.
 
The Navy did not give the name of the sailor, but his step-grandmother identified him as Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Randall Smith of Paulding, Ohio, who left behind a wife and three young daughters.
 
"He was an awesome young man," Darlene Proxmire told Reuters. "He loved his wife and children. He loved the Navy."
 

Jordan trip 'a real eye-opener'

Abdulazeez, an engineer, had occasionally smoked marijuana and drank alcohol, and struggled to reconcile that with his faith in Islam, the friends said. At one point, in 2012 or 2013, he received therapy for his drugs and alcohol use, they said.
 
"He used it to de-stress, when things were difficult at home, or whatever," the first friend said, adding that tensions between Abdulazeez and his Palestinian parents had upset him. His parents nearly got divorced in 2009, according to court records.
 
Abdulazeez also had problems with local youths that sometimes took on a religious and racial tone, the friend said.







One of the friends received a text message from Abdulazeez hours before Thursday's attack in Chattanooga, a link to a long Islamic verse that included the line: "Whosoever shows enmity to a friend of Mine, then I have declared war against him."

 

The friend showed the text message to Reuters on Saturday. He said he thought nothing of the message at the time, but now wonders if it was a hint at Thursday's attack in Chattanooga.

 

The FBI is investigating the shooting as an act of terrorism, but said it was premature to speculate on the gunman's motive.

 

The rampage has re-ignited concerns about the radicalization of young Muslim men. Abdulazeez's friends said he returned from a trip to Jordan in 2014 concerned about conflicts in the Middle East and the reluctance of the United States and other countries to intervene.

 
After the trip, he purchased three assault rifles on an online marketplace and used them for target practice, the friends said.
 
"He expressed that he was upset about (the Middle East). But I can't imagine it drove him to this," said the friend who received the text message.





http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4681357,00.html

sassy wrote:Tenn. gunman used drugs, struggled with clash of faith

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — A few months before he killed five U.S. service members in a shooting rampage here, the 24-year-old gunman, who often joked that he was just an “Arabian redneck,” was smoking marijuana with friends.

It was getting late and Mohammad Youssef Abdulazeez had work the next morning at his new job some two hours away in Franklin, said a close friend who was with him that night and spent several hours with him in the days leading up to the shooting.

Abdulazeez dropped off a couple of his friends at their homes on the night in April, snorted some crushed caffeine pills and started to drive.

A little after 2 a.m., Abdulazeez was arrested for driving under the influence, according to court papers, an incident sharply at odds with blog posts in which he portrayed himself as a devout Muslim and his existence in this world a “prison of monotony and routine.”

The portrait emerging of Abdulazeez isn’t one of a committed Muslim or vengeful jihadist, but rather an aimless young man who came from a troubled home and struggled to hold down a job after college, said friends and law enforcement officials.

He never dated, the friend said.

In a statement, his family said Abdulazeez’s mental illness had contributed to the crime. “For many years, our son suffered from depression. It grieves us beyond belief to know that his pain found its expression in this heinous act of violence,” the statement said.

Abdulazeez had been in and out of treatment for his depression and frequently stopped taking his medication, despite his parents’ pleas for him to continue, said a person close to the family.

Abdulazeez smoked pot occasionally and then would feel guilty for violating his faith and beat himself up for it, said the close friend who has known Abdulazeez for 15 years and was recently questioned by the FBI. The friend, also a Muslim, spoke to The Washington Post on the condition of anonymity because he is concerned for his family’s privacy.

The friend said Abdulazeez was especially ashamed of his DUI arrest, which led to his mugshot being posted online and in Just Busted, a newspaper sold at local gas stations.

“He was pretty upset about it,” said the friend, who spoke with Abdulazeez almost daily in the weeks and days leading up to the shooting. “It was kind of degrading to him.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/chattanooga-shooter-an-aimless-young-man-who-smoked-dope-and-shot-guns/2015/07/18/c213f6a6-2d7d-11e5-a5ea-cf74396e59ec_story.html?postshare=4351437267697498

Looks like he had mental health problems.

That appears to be the consensus in the media over here. Certainly, the first thing everyone thought of was his Muslim association. But the authorities have found nothing there.

However, his DUI arrest marked a change in him, witnesses say. He appears to have been strongly embarrassed by it. Obviously psychotic as well, as I would not think a DUI is that traumatic an event for most. But his friends identify that as a turning point in his attitude.