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US citizen who fought for ISIS in Syria sentenced to 10 years in prison
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A naturalized U.S. citizen who pleaded guilty to receiving military training from the Islamic State in Syria was sentenced on Monday to 10 years in federal prison.
Lirim Sylejmani, 49, who was born in Kosovo and moved to Chicago about 25 years ago, engaged in at least one battle against U.S.-led coalition forces after he entered Syria a decade ago, according to prosecutors.
U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras in Washington, D.C., handed down Sylejmani’s prison sentence, which will be followed by a lifetime of supervised release.
Sylejmani pleaded guilty in December to one count of receiving military training from a foreign terrorist organization.
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A woman walks in the al-Hol camp in northeastern Syria’s Hasakeh province, where tens of thousands of mostly women and children linked to the Islamic State group have been living for years, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025. (AP)
«This defendant will spend a decade in prison thinking about the betrayal to this country,» wrote the interim U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, Jeanine Pirro, also a former Fox News host.
«Anyone thinking that ISIS is the answer to their questions, best think again,» she continued. «We will go to any lengths to root out subversive individuals who want to overthrow the government and harm its citizens.»
In November 2015, Sylejmani and his family flew to Turkey before crossing the border into Syria, where he received training with other ISIS recruits until February 2019, when he was captured with his family by Syrian forces in Baghouz, Syria, according to prosecutors.
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This is a locator map for Syria with its capital, Damascus. (AP Photo)
His military training included instruction on how to assemble and fire an AK-47 rifle, as well as how to use a PK Machine gun, M-16 rifle and grenades.
Sylejmani was also once injured in a battle with Syrian forces in June 2016.
Prosecutors said Sylejmani, who adopted the name Abu Sulayman al-Kosovi, pledged «bayat,» or allegiance, to ISIS leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi and to the ISIS organization in front of an Iraqi ISIS member.
He was transferred to the U.S. in September 2020 to face criminal charges in Washington, D.C.
Interim U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said: «Anyone thinking that ISIS is the answer to their questions, best think again.» (Drew ANGERER / AFP)
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«The conduct is far more than a single, impulsive act. He chose to jeopardize the safety of his family by bringing them to a war-torn country to join and take up arms for ISIS,» prosecutors wrote.
Sylejmani’s attorneys claim he is not a «committed jihadist» and does not espouse violence.
«He is guilt-ridden for his actions and the harm he has visited on his family, who remain detained in a refugee camp in Syria living under terrible conditions,» his lawyers wrote. «He wishes only to complete his time and find his wife and children, so he can live an average law-abiding life with them.»
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House panel summons Soros-backed Fairfax prosecutor over releases tied to violent illegal immigrant cases
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House Republicans are hauling in two top Fairfax County law enforcement officials, including a Soros-backed prosecutor, after violent crimes involving illegal immigrants released from custody intensified federal scrutiny of the county’s sanctuary-style policies.
Fairfax County Sheriff Stacey Ann Kincaid and Fairfax Commonwealth’s Attorney Steven Descano are invited to voluntarily testify at an upcoming Immigration Integrity, Security and Enforcement Subcommittee hearing entitled «Fairfax County Virginia – The Dangerous Consequences of Sanctuary City Policies.»
Both are elected Democrats, and Descano’s campaigns have received more than $700,000 in funds from organizations backed by far-left Hungarian-American billionaire George Soros, according to the Law Enforcement Legal Defense Fund, a pro-police group.
Descano and Kincaid received near-identical letters signed by Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, and Subcommittee Chairman Tom McClintock, R-Calif., which were also obtained by Fox News Digital.
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Fairfax County Sheriff Stacey Kincaid is seen. (Eva Russo/Getty Images)
«The hearing will examine how state and local policies that prohibit cooperation with federal immigration authorities hurt public safety,» Jordan and McClintock wrote.
«Your testimony will assist the Committee and Subcommittee in developing legislative reforms to address sanctuary jurisdictions.»
The Fairfax officials have until Monday to confirm their presence at the April 15 hearing to be held at the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill.
Descano has a record of dropping charges against illegal immigrants who often have prior criminal records, including Salvadoran national Marvin Morales-Ortez, who was accused of the murder of a Virginia man ambushed on a walking trail.
Jordan and McClintock previously wrote to Descano about their concerns in that case, saying his policies «prioritize illegal aliens over American citizens and threaten public safety.»
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Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano is seen speaking at an event in Fairfax County, Virginia. (Sarah Voisin/Getty Images)
They said Kincaid released Morales-Ortez on December 16 despite his potential MS-13 ties after Descano’s office declined to further pursue prosecution in a malicious wounding case from September 12.
«Despite an ICE detainer on Morales-Ortez, your office refused to briefly detain him until ICE could arrest him and failed to even notify ICE about his imminent release,» the lawmakers wrote to Kincaid at the time.
«One day later, Morales-Ortez allegedly murdered a man in Reston, Virginia, and has now been charged with second-degree murder. Even now, however, you continue to defend your failed sanctuary policies and refuse to take accountability for their consequences,» the lawmakers wrote in the letter, first reported by Washington’s ABC affiliate.
The outlet further reported that Fairfax County’s board, led by Chairman Jeffrey McKay, D-Franconia, also prohibits the Fairfax County Police Department from cooperating with ICE.
Nick Minock, a reporter for the outlet, later obtained a transcript of Morales-Ortez’s preliminary hearing in which Descano’s office posited that Morales-Ortez was present when Jose Guillen Mejia was murdered and had ambushed the man on the trail.
A short time after he was released, Morales-Ortez allegedly went to a home on Fan Shell Court in Reston, Va. — near John F. Dulles International Airport — and allegedly shot a man inside.
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That chain of events enraged the Trump administration, with then-Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin saying that «Fairfax County politicians [who] pushed policies that released this illegal alien from jail» have «blood on their hands.»
More recently, the family of Stephanie Minter, a 41-year-old mother stabbed to death at a Fairfax bus stop by an illegal immigrant with a long rap sheet, called for Descano’s ouster.
Abdul Jalloh, a Sierra Leone national, was charged with second-degree murder, and Descano released him despite being warned of his 30 prior arrests. Jalloh had been served an order of removal during the Biden administration but was never deported.
A police official in Mount Vernon emailed concerns to Descano’s office about Jalloh being released again, according to Fox & Friends.
Given the heavy Democratic bent of Fairfax, Virginia’s largest county by population and one state officials are trying to include in at least five newly drawn congressional districts, Descano and Kincaid have been strongly supported by voters in each election.
Republicans did not mount opponents against either candidate in 2023, while Descano’s only challenge came from fellow Democrat Ed Nuttall, whose primary bid was reportedly boosted by victims’ rights advocates.
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Nuttall also mounted a write-in challenge in the general election that year but lost. Kincaid was first elected in 2013.
Fairfax Democrats removed Nuttall from their party amid that write-in bid after he attended a Brain Foundation fundraiser with Fairfax’s lone Republican board member, Pat Herrity of Springfield, and a Republican board candidate from Sully named Keith Elliott, according to FairfaxNow.
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Herrity is the son of the late Chairman Jack Herrity, a Republican known as «Mr. Fairfax» in the 1980s when the county was much more conservative.
Fox News Digital reached out to Descano’s and Kincaid’s offices for comment.
hearings house of representatives politics,migrant crime,democrats,illegal immigrants,sanctuary cities
INTERNACIONAL
En medio de la guerra en Medio Oriente, Israel lanzó una campaña virtual para reclutar espías en Irán
“Llegó el momento de actuar, una breve conversación podría abrir un nuevo capítulo para usted. Contáctenos a través de una línea segura”. En plena guerra contra la república islámica, la agencia de inteligencia exterior israelí, conocida como el Mossad, intensifica sus esfuerzos en las redes sociales para reclutar agentes iraníes.
Mientras el primer ministro israelí, Benjamin Netanyahu, no deja de llamar a los iraníes a “tomar el destino en sus manos”, una campaña más discreta se desarrolla en internet desde hace meses.
Leé también: El líder supremo de Irán divulgó un mensaje con amenazas a Israel por la muerte del jefe de Seguridad Nacional
Un canal del Mossad fue discretamente creado en la plataforma Telegram a finales de diciembre. En el sitio oficial del organismo figura un enlace que confirma así su autenticidad, junto a otros que llevan a cuentas de reclutamiento en Instagram, Facebook y LinkedIn en hebreo, inglés y árabe.
Sin embargo la campaña choca con una realidad: Irán impuso un absoluto silencio digital en el país y es casi imposible conectarse a internet.
Informes desde el terreno
Una cuenta en Telegram en persa fue creada el 24 de diciembre, cuatro días antes de que estallaran manifestaciones masivas en todo Irán.
Un mensaje fijado en la parte superior del canal indica: “íBienvenido! Si llegaste hasta aquí, probablemente quieras ponerte en contacto con nosotros. Nos alegra”. El Mossad israelí recluta espías en Irán (Foto: Inteligencia Artificial)
El mensaje va seguido de instrucciones detalladas sobre cómo entrar en contacto con el Instituto (“Mossad” en hebreo) de forma segura, a través de un agente conversacional o de su sitio web.
El 6 de marzo, el canal -que actualmente cuenta con unos 48.000 suscriptores-, publicó un mensaje animando a los iraníes a transmitir información desde el interior del país. “Sigan enviando sus informes desde el terreno. Ustedes son testigos de la verdad. ¡Perseveraremos hasta la victoria!”, afirma.
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En X también apareció a principios de marzo una nueva cuenta bajo el nombre “Mossad Official”, tras el inicio de los bombardeos israelí-estadounidenses el 28 de febrero. Esta también multiplica los llamamientos, apoyados con atractivos videos generados con IA.
Uno de ellos muestra a “basijíes”(miembros de la fuerza de voluntarios que suelen reprimir las manifestaciones opositoras y que dependen de la Guardia Revolucionaria) mirando al cielo, visiblemente asustados por un posible ataque, con un texto que promete que estos milicianos islamistas encargados del orden público “no podrán esconderse por mucho tiempo”. Otro muestra a un hombre tomando discretamente una foto desde su ventana con su teléfono móvil.
Cuenta en persa en X
El Mossad “lleva a cabo este tipo de acciones desde hace décadas, en función de las herramientas y tecnologías disponibles”, explicó Yosi Melman, periodista israelí especializado en defensa e inteligencia.
“Al igual que otros servicios extranjeros, la agencia financió publicaciones y emisoras de radio en países enemigos. El Mossad no inventó nada nuevo. La CIA lo hace desde hace años”, destacó.
Seis meses antes de la apertura del canal oficial en Telegram, otra cuenta, llamada “Mossad Farsi”, apareció en X.
Publicó su primer mensaje el 25 de junio, justo después de los doce días de guerra entre Israel e Irán. Hoy cuenta con más de 60.000 seguidores.
Sus primeras publicaciones fueron una serie de videos de Menashe Amir, conocido presentador de radio israelí nacido en Teherán, que pasó más de seis décadas dirigiéndose en persa a los iraníes.
Amir confirmó que la cuenta estaba efectivamente gestionada por la agencia de inteligencia, aunque no figure en la lista publicada el martes por el Mosad.
“Make Iran great again”
“El primer mensaje (video) que publicaron conmigo fue visto 2.200.000 veces”, comentó.
La cuenta no fue autenticada por las autoridades, pero los medios israelíes la consideran oficial.
“Mossad Farsi” publicó una serie de críticas sarcásticas contra los dirigentes iraníes, así como contenidos variados.
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Así, por ejemplo, hay una oferta de teleconsulta médica para los iraníes, una enigmática secuencia de números, una encuesta preguntando quién debería dirigir Irán para resolver su crisis crónica de agua, o bien un video que promete “Make Iran great again”, una versión adaptada del famoso eslogan de Donald Trump, “Que Estados Unidos vuelva a ser grande”.
El tono se volvió más insistente cuando estallaron protestas masivas en Irán a finales de diciembre de 2025, que fueron reprimidas violentamente. “Salgan juntos a la calle. Llegó el momento. Estamos con ustedes. No solo a distancia o con palabras, estamos con ustedes sobre el terreno”, afirmó uno de esos mensajes.
El martes, pocas horas después del asesinato por parte de Israel de Ali Lariyani, uno de los principales dirigentes iraníes, y del comandante de los Basij, la cuenta comentó de forma lacónica: “Las personas crueles terminan muriendo”.
(Con información de AFP)
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