Boston Bombing Suspects’ Mom Was in US Terrorist Database – Reports
So, yes, it's a little strange that this very outspoken father has had a change of heart and indefinitely postponed his trip. Zubeidat, though, never planned to arrive in the U.S., where she's wanted on felony shoplifting charges. But it appears her name was also in an American terror database, not unlike her old son, who was on lists with both the FBI and the CIA. Today ABC Boston reports that "Russian officials warned authorities in the United States about the mother of the bombing suspects in 2011, and she was also added to a terror watch list." And CNN explains:
Zubeidat Tsarnaev and her older son were both added by U.S. authorities to the Terrorist Identities Datamart Environment, or TIDE, database in 2011 -- a collection of more than a half million names maintained by the National Counterterrorism Center, an intelligence official said.
But The Boston Globe's Noah Bierman reported on Thursday that while she was in the database, Zubeidat was not on the FBI's list, which holds much more weight in intelligence circles:
Zubeidat Tsarnaeva -- was not placed on US terror watchlist, as her son was, an indication that the FBI did not consider her a threat, the official said.
Zubeidat does have connections to "Misha," the mysterious Armenian convert to Islam, who is thought by Tamerlan's relatives to have influenced her older son. "He was just a friend," Zubeidat told ABC News of Misha earlier this week, and she told British media that "reading extremist materials does not make you a terrorist."
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