Everett, Wash.
A National Guardsman from Washington was charged last week of offering military information to al Qaida. Spc. Ryan G. Anderson, a tank crewman preparing for duty in Iraq, allegedly tried to contact al Qaida through an extremist Islamic chat room. Army officials said Anderson, a Muslim convert, offered federal agents posing as terrorists “information about the capabilities and vulnerability” of U.S. weapons. A high school friend said Anderson, 26, was once fascinated by right-wing militia groups and joked about overthrowing the government. “Ryan’s kind of a weird type of guy,” said the friend, Nathan Knopp.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
