NEW YORK (Reuters) - A Manhattan federal court sentenced a Lebanese-born Swedish man to life in prison on Tuesday for trying to establish an al Qaeda training camp in the United States and running websites on how to make bombs.
The sentence was handed down four months after Oussama Abdullah Kassir, 43, was found guilty on 11 counts, including providing material support to al Qaeda and distributing information relating to weapons of mass destruction.
“The defendant is a clear threat to public safety,” U.S. District Judge John Keenan said in sentencing Kassir, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.
Prosecutors said Kassir was involved in trying to establish a training camp on a property in Bly, Oregon, where Islamist militants could receive military-style training in preparation for combat in Afghanistan.
Kassir also operated at least six websites with instructions on making bombs and poisons and featuring materials such as “The Mujahideen Explosives Handbook,” prosecutors said.
They said Kassir conspired with two other suspects who are detained in Britain and awaiting extradition to the United States.
Reporting by Martinne Geller; Editing by Daniel Trotta and Chris Wilson
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