» Iraqi refugees who settled in Kentucky supported Al-Qaida, attempted to send guns, cash » News — GOPUSA
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — From a Kentucky college town, two Iraqi refugees plotted to send sniper rifles, Stinger missiles and money to al-Qaida operatives waging an insurgency back home against U.S. troops. The scheme was foiled and both are in prison, but the case has left jitters about whether extremists might slip in among Syrian refugees resettling in the U.S.The two men had been involved in insurgent attacks in Iraq before arriving in Bowling Green, Kentucky, in 2009 as part of a U.S. program to help displaced Iraqis. Their plan unraveled when they teamed up with an FBI informant, leading to their 2011 arrest.Neither Waad Ramadan Alwan nor Mohanad Shareef Hammadi was charged with plotting to launch attacks inside the U.S., and authorities said their weapons and money never made it to Iraq. But their plotting in a middle-American city of 61,000 has given ammunition to opponents of allowing Syrian refugees into the U.S. following the deadly attacks last week in Paris.Sen. Rand Paul, who is vying for the Republican presidential nomination, pointed to the case in his hometown this week while touting legislation to block President Barack Obama’s goal of bringing 10,000 additional Syrian refugees to the U.S.
