Bartamaha (Minnesota):-Two women pleaded not guilty in a US court Monday to aiding the Shebab, a Somali-based Islamist group linked to Al-Qaeda, court records showed.
They were arrested last week as part of a broader investigation that had charged a total of 19 people, of whom nine had been arrested in the United States or abroad.
Amina Farah Ali, 33, and Hawo Mohamed Hassan, 63, are both naturalized US citizens who are originally from Somalia and live in Rochester, Minnesota.
Both women have been released on bond pending trial.
Ali is charged with 12 counts of providing material support to al-Shabaab and one count of conspiring to provide support.
She is accused of raising money under the “false pretense that such funds were for the poor and needy.”
Ali was allegedly recorded on a fundraising conference call telling listeners to “forget about the other charities” and focus on “the jihad.”
Hassan is accused of helping Ali raise the money and faces one count of conspiring to provide support to al-Shabaab and three counts of making false statements to the FBI.
If convicted, they face a potential 15 years in prison on the conspiracy count. Ali also faces a potential 15 years in prison on each material support count, and Hassan also faces a potential eight years in prison on each false statement count.
The Shebab claimed responsibility for July 11 suicide bombings in Kampala that killed 76 people and raised fears of a regionalization of the Somali conflict.
Minnesota is home to one of the Somali disapora’s largest communities. It is believed to be a key source of funding and fighters for the Islamist insurgency bent on toppling the US-backed government in Mogadishu.
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Source:-AP.
