A Somali man accused of war crimes has been working as a security guard at Dulles International Airport near Washington, DC, a new CNN investigation reveals.
In his former life, Yusuf Abdi Ali served as a commander in Somalia's Barre regime, which is accused of, according to the report, "terrorizing the Isaaq people, torturing clan members, burning villages and conducting mass executions."
In a 1992 documentary that aired on Canada's CBC, villagers described the atrocities for which Ali stands accused. One person claimed Ali captured and killed his brother after torturing him:
"He tied (my brother) to military vehicle and dragged him behind. He said to us if you've got enough power, get him back," the villager said. "He shredded him into pieces. That's how he died."
Ah, what's a few body-shreddings and mass executions? A little thing like that should not stop anyone from landing a gig working security at one of America's busiest airports. I mean, many people surely have worse resumes, no?
Ali, who has been living in the DC-metro area for some 20 years now, is just one of more than 1,000 alleged war criminals living and working in the U.S. according to the report.
And here's the best part -- despite the egregious nature of the crimes for which Ali stands accused, and despite that he was sued for "war crimes" by human rights groups ten years ago and is still in the process of litigating that case -- his employer said it had no idea about Ali's past because he was fully vetted by the FBI and the TSA!
Master Security, the firm that contracts security for the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA), said Ali passed a "full, federally mandated vetting process" including an FBI background check and a TSA screening.
Below are some additional details from CNN's extensive report:
Ali is being sued in a U.S. civil court. The lawsuit, which a human rights group initially filed in 2006, calls Ali a "war criminal" who committed "crimes against humanity."
"He oversaw some of the most incredible violence that you can imagine," said Kathy Roberts, an attorney for the Center for Justice and Accountability (CJA), which is leading the civil suit. "He tortured people personally; he oversaw torture."
The case has had numerous twists and appeals over the years. The most recent happened in February, when the U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that only part of the case can move forward -- the lawsuit's claims that Ali tortured and attempted to murder the plaintiff. The other part of the suit -- claims that he committed "war crimes" -- cannot because those alleged crimes happened outside of the United States.
The lawsuit is now headed to the U.S. Supreme Court. If the court agrees to hear it, it could become a landmark case over whether foreigners living in the U.S. can be held accountable for crimes allegedly committed overseas.
Roberts claims Ali is directly responsible for these atrocities, painting disturbing images of acts he allegedly committed.
"He arrested people, stole their stuff, burned villages, executed masses of people," Roberts said. "At one point he had a school come out to view an execution."
Apparently Ali cannot be tried for war crimes, however, because of "jurisdiction" issues. Interesting, considering it seems very easy for the world's thugs led by the U.N. to pursue Israel on bogus "war crimes" charges all the time.
It was only until CNN released the findings of its investigation, that Ali was placed on "administrative leave."
That's comforting.
