The Jihad Supermarket

Anwar al-Awlaki, the American-born fugitive Al Qaeda leader now hiding in the tribal areas of Yemen, recently issued a call for Muslims to kill American civilians. This sort of indiscretion doesn’t seem to harm his reputation — and probably even enhances it — among American Muslims.

Here’s an exclusive report from CBN news about the Halalco supermarket in Falls Church, Virginia, which featured Mr. al-Awlaki’s books and DVDs until Erick Stakelback paid a little visit to the store and drew proprietor’s attention to the al-Awlaki display:


Below are some excerpts from the accompanying article at CBN:

DC-Area Islamic Store Sells Anwar Al-Awlaki Recordings

WASHINGTON — Some U.S. intelligence officials believe al Qaeda cleric Anwar al-Awlaki is now the world’s most influential Islamic terrorist, surpassing even Osama bin Laden.

In recent months, al-Awlaki’s jihadi “street cred” has risen to new levels.

He exchanged e-mails with Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hassan and mentored Christmas Day “underwear bomber” Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab. He also reportedly served as the inspiration for Times Square bomber Faisal Shahzad.

[…]

U.S. officials want al-Awlaki taken out.

They missed that chance just a few years back, when al-Awlaki was imam of the Dar al-Hijrah mosque in Falls Church, Va., a suburb of Washington, D.C.

Al-Awlaki has since fled to Yemen. But a CBN News investigation has revealed that the al Qaeda cleric’s presence is still being felt in the leafy suburb of Falls Church, just minutes from the nation’s capital.

[…]

Halalco is the largest store of its kind in the Washington, D.C. area.

In addition to halal meat, the store carries a large selection of Islamic books, recordings and clothing.

In an exclusive investigation, CBN News discovered that Halalco was also selling CDs and DVDs by none other than al-Awlaki.

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In the store, was a display devoted entirely to al-Awlaki’s works just one day after he released a video calling for the killing of U.S. civilians.

When Halalco’s management was asked for comment, CBN News was told to come back the following day to speak with store owner Abdul Mateen Chida.

The next day, the al-Awlaki display was gone. CBN News asked Chida about the sudden change.

“We have removed them now,” he replied.

[…]

CBN News purchased additional materials at Halalco, including notorious anti-Semitic works like The Protocols of Zion and The International Jew and a book by Muslim Brotherhood leader Yusuf al-Qaradawi, who has voiced support for Iraqi insurgents and suicide bombings against Israeli civilians.

CBN News also found copies of a book written by convicted terrorist Abu Hamza al-Masri. Chida said he did not know that al-Masri was a convicted terrorist. He said he is unaware of the contents of his books and orders them based on their titles.

Chida was asked if young Muslims could be inspired to commit violence by some of the materials sold at Halalco.

“Those things, no one can control,” he answered.

Hat tip: Vlad Tepes.