A Kenyan national stands trial in New York for an alleged 9/11-style terror plot, opting for a puzzling passive defense strategy that leaves many questioning his motives.
At a Glance
- Cholo Abdi Abdullah, a Kenyan man, is accused of planning a 9/11-style attack on U.S. soil
- Abdullah allegedly trained as a pilot in the Philippines for four years to carry out the attack
- He faces multiple terrorism charges and could face 20 years to life in prison if convicted
- Abdullah is representing himself but is not actively participating in his trial
- The case highlights ongoing threats from international terrorist organizations
Another 9/11 Narrowly Averted?
Just when you thought it was safe to look up at the skyline again, here comes another wannabe terrorist hellbent on turning our cities into smoking craters.
Cholo Abdi Abdullah, a Kenyan national with a flair for the dramatic, apparently spent four years training as a pilot in the Philippines. But this wasn’t your run-of-the-mill career change. Oh no, Abdullah was allegedly cooking up a sinister plot to hijack a commercial airliner and crash it into a U.S. building, because apparently, some people still hate America that much.
According to prosecutors, Abdullah was taking orders from al-Shabaab, an al-Qaeda-affiliated terrorist group.
This aspiring pilot extraordinaire allegedly spent his time researching how to breach cockpit doors and studying American skyscrapers as potential targets.
A Trial of Silence
Now, here’s where things get really interesting. Abdullah, in a move that’s either brilliantly strategic or monumentally stupid, has decided to represent himself in court. But wait, it gets better. He’s pleaded not guilty and is now sitting passively during his trial, refusing to participate.
It’s like he’s playing a high-stakes game of “If I can’t see you, you can’t see me” with the U.S. justice system.
“Through standby counsel that the defendant maintains his position that he ‘wants to merely sit passively during the trial, not oppose the prosecution and whatever the outcome, he would accept the outcome because he does not believe that this is a legitimate system,’” prosecutors said.
One has to wonder if Abdullah thinks this passive approach will somehow magically make all the evidence against him disappear. Spoiler alert: it won’t. The prosecution is probably having a field day, presenting their case unopposed while Abdullah sits there like a petulant child who’s been told he can’t have dessert before dinner.
As this trial unfolds over the next three weeks, it serves as a stark reminder that the war on terror is far from over. We’re still fighting it.