{"id":17944,"date":"2015-12-03T17:33:05","date_gmt":"2015-12-04T01:33:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=17944"},"modified":"2015-12-03T17:33:34","modified_gmt":"2015-12-04T01:33:34","slug":"russian-taliban-fighter-sentenced-life-prison-trying-kill-u-s-soldiers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=17944","title":{"rendered":"Russian Taliban Fighter Sentenced to Life in Prison For Trying to Kill U.S. Soldiers in Afghanistant"},"content":{"rendered":"

VIRGINIA<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\n

A federal judge today sentenced Irek Ilgiz Hamidullin,<\/strong> 55, a Russian national and former Russian army tank commander, to life plus 30 years in prison for conspiring to shoot down American helicopters and to kill U.S. and Afghan soldiers, officials said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"hamidullin\"<\/a>
Irek Ilgiz Hamidullin<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Also Hamidullin conspired to use a weapon of mass destruction. He was\u00a0convicted of other charges relating to an attack that he led against U.S. and Afghan forces in Afghanistan in November 2009, officials said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cFew crimes could be more serious than this one,\u201d said U.S. Attorney Dana J. Boente.\u00a0<\/strong> \u201cIn a well-planned, deliberate, and premeditated attack, Hamidullin led an assault upon an Afghan outpost by a group of insurgents, many of whom he recruited and trained, with the intent to kill Afghan Border Police and responding American forces. \u00a0Hamidullin is a charismatic proselytizer of the radical views that animate Islamist violence such as that perpetrated by the Taliban and the Haqqani Network upon Americans and Afghans \u2013 civilian and military targets alike \u2013 especially in 2009 when this attack took place.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Adding, “He not only has the will to do violence <\/span>himself, but perhaps more dangerously, has the ability and the desire to enlist others to engage in violence. \u00a0Today\u2019s sentence of life in prison will fulfill our need to protect the public, and will hopefully serve as a deterrent to others contemplating engaging in such actions. \u00a0I want to commend our trial team and investigating partners for their terrific work in this case.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Hamidullin was indicted by a federal grand jury in October 2014, followed by a superseding indictment on April 23, 2015.<\/span><\/p>\n

On Nov. 28, 2009, Hamidullin led a group of fighters in an attack on U.S. and Afghan forces at Camp<\/strong> Leyza, <\/strong>located in the Khost Province of Afghanistan, near the border of Pakistan, according to authorities.<\/span><\/p>\n

Officials said he had planned the attack for months, received approval from the Taliban and Haqqani Network, recruited other fighters and acquired weapons for the attack, including IED\u2019s, heavy machine guns and a shoulder-fired rocket, with the intent of shooting down U.S. helicopters responding to the attack.<\/span><\/p>\n

According to evidence presented at trial, Hamidullin and his fighters initiated their attack, beginning with firing into Camp Leyza.<\/span><\/p>\n

Soon after the attack began, two U.S. Army helicopters responded to Camp <\/span>Leyza, just as Hamidullin knew from his months of planning and reconnaissance.\u00a0 He positioned himself on a nearby hill, away from his fighters, where he had a clear view of the battlefield and could radio orders to his fighters.<\/span><\/p>\n

As the helicopters approached, officials said he ordered his fighters to fire the anti-aircraft weapons he had strategically placed in the area.\u00a0 Both weapons malfunctioned and the helicopters were not fired upon.\u00a0 He then ordered his fighters to pack up their weapons and other gear and return to Pakistan.<\/span><\/p>\n

During their retreat, officials said U.S. forces ultimately identified and eliminated approximately 20 of Hamidullin\u2019s fighters.<\/span><\/p>\n

The next morning, as U.S. and Afghan forces were conducting a battle damage assessment, Hamidullin was found hiding on the battlefield. \u00a0 After a brief firefight with U.S. Army soldiers, the two insurgents were killed and Hamidullin was wounded and captured, officials said.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A federal judge today sentenced Irek Ilgiz Hamidullin, 55, a Russian national and former Russian army tank commander, to life plus 30 years in prison for conspiring to shoot down American helicopters and to kill U.S. and Afghan soldiers, officials said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":14380,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16,3],"tags":[1518,1979,1978,1517],"class_list":["post-17944","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-home-main-slider","category-u-s-department-of-justice","tag-afghanistan","tag-camp-leyza","tag-russian","tag-taliban"],"yoast_head":"\nRussian Taliban Fighter Sentenced to Life in Prison For Trying to Kill U.S. Soldiers in Afghanistant<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A federal judge today sentenced Irek Ilgiz Hamidullin, 55, a Russian national and former Russian army tank 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