BUTNER, N.C. — Up to the moment he was sentenced to life in prison for plotting to “wage a war of urban terrorism,” that led to the bombing of the World Trade Center 1993, Sheik Omar Abdel-Rahman continued to rail against the United States’ policies toward the Middle East and Muslims.
The revered leader of the Al-Salaam Mosque in Jersey City, Abdel-Rahman, after his arrest and conviction, became an early symbol of America’s complicated relationship with Muslims in its attempt to protect residents against terrorism.
After serving more than two decades in a federal prison from which he still preached his radical religious messages, Abdel-Rahman died behind bars. He was 78.
“I have not committed any crime,” Abdel-Rahman, convicted on 48 of 50 charges, declared through an interpreter at the time of his 1996 sentencing. “It is impossible for me to build a bomb.”
Born in Egypt, Abdel-Rahman rose from a life of poverty to become the spiritual leader of a radical Islamic group. He was charged in his native country with ordering the 1981 assassination of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat. After being acquitted, Abdel-Rahman moved to the United States in 1990, first settling in Brooklyn where he led a mosque.
The blind cleric, who suffered from diabetes and other physical ailments, later became the head of the Jersey City mosque with devoted followers.
His arrest, along with nine others accused in the terror plot, led to hard feelings against the federal government by many Muslims in the area who said at the time they were unfairly being portrayed and viewed as villains.
Federal prosecutors accused Abdel-Rahman of giving the orders for the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, which killed six people and injured more than 1,000 others.
He was also convicted of approving plans to bomb the United Nations, the Lincoln and Holland tunnels, the George Washington Bridge and other landmarks in what was supposed to be a day of synchronized bombings around New York City.
Authorities have said Abdel-Rahman was mistakenly granted a tourist visa to enter the United States and was facing deportation when the bombing occurred.
Fighting for an Islamic government in Egypt, Abdel-Rahman called for the death of those who opposed that goal. Along with planning the terror plot, Abdel-Rahman was convicted of planning to kill Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak during a visit to New York City in 1993.
At his trial, which lasted nine months, Abdel-Rahman did not put on a defense, but he delivered a fiery 90-minute speech before U.S. District Judge Michael Mukasey sentenced him in Manhattan to life in prison on Jan. 17, 1996.
Prison officials said Abdel-Rahman, who was being held at a federal prison compound in Butner, NC, died of natural causes.
MaryAnn Spoto may be reached at mspoto@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @MaryAnnSpoto. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
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