American soldier wanted to help ISIS attack American troops
Cole Bridges was sentenced this week to fourteen years in prison followed by ten years of judicial supervision.
This American joined the US Army in 2019. But he turned out not to be a blank slate. This then 19-year-old young man had already studied IS and jihad propaganda extensively online and had already expressed his support for IS on social media.
But the FBI tracked him down and trapped him. An FBI agent posed as an IS sympathizer with ties to fighters in the Middle East. In their communications, the American soldier provided advice on the training of IS fighters and provided parts of US military manuals. He also gave the FBI agent information about possible targets in New York. He also explained how IS fighters could best attack American forces in the Middle East to maximize casualties, and how to best defend their own positions. He also forwarded two videos to the man he believed was an IS sympathizer with ties in the Middle East. In the first video, he was seen in uniform in front of an IS flag while making a gesture of support for the terror group. In a second video he recorded a propaganda speech with a manipulated voice.
(SR for Tagtik/Source: NBC - BBC - Belga/Illustration picture: Pixabay)