AJC Praises FBI for Averting Terror Disaster in Oregon

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Nov 28, 2010, 11:33 ET

NEW YORK, Nov. 28, 2010 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- AJC praised law enforcement for preventing a potentially major terrorist attack in Portland, Oregon, over the weekend.

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"Thanks to exceptional FBI vigilance, another terrorist attempt on U.S. soil was averted," said AJC Executive Director David Harris. "We could not be more grateful for, or admiring of, the determined effort of law-enforcement authorities to protect our nation."

The FBI arrested on Friday evening Mohamed Osman Mohamud, a 19-year-old naturalized U.S. citizen from Somalia, who had planned to detonate explosives in a van parked near the annual Christmas tree-lighting ceremony at Pioneer Square in downtown Portland. The thousands gathered in the square reportedly were not in direct danger, as undercover agents involved in the sting operation had ensured that the explosives in the van were dummies.

As The New York Times noted in today's edition, this "terrorism attempt was the latest in a string of plots since last year involving Americans or immigrants who had become radicalized, often through exposure to extremist Web sites."

"This is another sobering reminder of the threat we face from the forces of radical Islam," said Harris.

"The intended target, we have seen, can be anyone, anywhere. It can be a Christmas tree-lighting ceremony in Portland, a synagogue in the Bronx, the subway system in Washington, or a Dallas skyscraper, all of which, thankfully, were averted by vigilant officials. Or it can be an army base in Fort Hood or military recruiting station in Little Rock, where, sadly, tragedy occurred," said Harris.

"Americans must remain alert to the very real dangers in today's world, yet never paralyzed by them," said Harris. "Terrorists and would-be terrorists alike must always know that Americans stand strong and resolute in defense of our country -- and its bedrock values."

SOURCE American Jewish Committee