Along with one of the Cole bomber masterminds, Jaber Elbaneh is one of the escapees from the Sanaa, Yemen jail last Friday. Elbaneh is an American of Yemeni descent, and one of the "Lackawanna Six," as profiled in "
Chasing the Sleeper Cell" on PBS:
In May 2003, the U.S. government unsealed an indictment charging Jaber Elbaneh, 37, with providing material support to Al Qaeda.
According to Sahim Alwan, Elbaneh admired Kamal Derwish who
encouraged the young Lackwanna men to become more religious. Derwish,
who is believed to have been an Al Qaeda recruiter, organized the
summer 2001 trip into Afghanistan.
Elbaneh traveled to Afghanistan with al-Bakri, Alwan and Yahya Goba.
At the camp, Elbaneh told Alwan that he wanted to fight with the
Taliban and was willing to become a martyr.
Elbaneh never returned to the U.S. after his trip to Afghanistan and
in September 2003, the FBI announced a $5 million reward for
information leading to his arrest. He was believed to be living in
Yemen.
January 2004 Update: According to U.S. and Yemeni officials
familiar with the case, Elbaneh has been taken into custody in Yemen.
These officials gave no details of his arrest, but U.S. officials say
that negotiations concerning Elbaneh's possible extradition are under
way between the U.S. and Yemeni governments.