Moner Mohammad Abu Salha

Moner Mohammad Abu Salha
Born 1991/92
Vero Beach, Florida U.S.
Died May 25, 2014 (age 22)
Ariha, Syria
Cause of death Suicide bombing
Nationality American
Other names Abi Hareera Al Amreeki
Religion Sunni Islam

Moner Mohammad Abu Salha (also Munir Mohammed Abou Saleha aka Abi Hareera Al Amreeki) was an American suicide bomber who killed himself and several Syrian troops with a truck bomb in Ariha, Syria.[1]

Biography

Salha was raised in Vero Beach, Florida, by a Sunni Palestinian father and an Italian-American mother. At the age of 22, he became the first known American suicide bomber to die in Syria.[1] He produced a video describing his motivation to die on behalf of the Nusra Front.[2][3]

Salha's name later came up as a contact in an unsuccessful 2014 investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The subject of that investigation was Omar Mateen, who would later commit the 2016 Orlando nightclub shooting.[4] The investigation was motivated "because Abu-Salha and Mateen attended the same mosque,"[5] law-enforcement officials told the Wall Street Journal. During the shooting, Mateen told a 9-1-1 operator that the shooting was inspired by Abu-Salha.[6] In the video published by al-Nusra, Salha said that he was being watched by the FBI before he left for Syria, and that he moved to stay with friends in the state of Florida in order to throw the FBI off track and make them believe he was in the United States after he had left.[7] Both Salha and Mateen lived in Fort Pierce, Florida.[8]

References

  1. 1 2 Bergen, Peter (July 14, 2014). "The all-American al Qaeda suicide bomber". CNN. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
  2. ↑ Wagner, Meg (July 30, 2014). "'We are coming for you': American suicide bomber who threatened U.S., burned passport returned to U.S. for months before Syria attack". New York Daily News. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Al Qaeda-linked Syria fighters release video purporting to show American suicide bomber". Fox News. Associated Press. July 27, 2014. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
  4. ↑ "Omar Mateen: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know". Heavy. June 12, 2016. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
  5. ↑ BARRETT,, DEVLIN; ENTOUS and, ADAM; CULLISON, ALAN. "FBI Twice Probed Orlando Gunman". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 21 June 2016. Law-enforcement officials said that investigation was prompted because Abu-Salha and Mateen attended the same mosque.
  6. ↑ Bertrand, Natasha (June 13, 2016). "The FBI director just painted a bizarre picture of the man behind the worst mass shooting in US history". Business Insider. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
  7. ↑ Hanrahan, Mark (August 28, 2014). "Moner Mohammad Abu-Salha, American Suicide Bomber, Says He Was Being Watched By FBI In US". International Business Times. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
  8. ↑ Detman, Gary (June 12, 2016). "Omar Mateen of Fort Pierce identified as Pulse Nightclub killer". KCBY 11 (Coos Bay Oregon). WPEC. Retrieved June 12, 2016.


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