Letter to Her Excellency Dina Kawar, Ambassador of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan to the United States of America - Rep. Zeldin Co-Leads Letter to Ambassador of Jordan Re: Ahlam Ahmad Al-Tamimi

Letter

Dear Ambassador Kawar,

We write today to respectfully request a meeting at your earliest convenience regarding the case of Ahlam Ahmad Al-Tamimi, a Jordanian citizen well-known to the United States Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). As you are likely aware, Al Tamimi was a primary accomplice in the August 9, 2001 suicide bomb attack at a Sbarro pizza restaurant in Jerusalem that killed 15 people, including two United States nationals. Al-Tamimi pled guilty in an Israeli court in 2003 to multiple counts of murder arising from the attack and was sentenced to 16 life terms of incarceration. Al-Tamimi served only eight years of the sentence before being released on or about October 28, 2011, as part of a prisoner exchange between the government of Israel and Hamas.

On March 14, 2017, the United States Department of Justice unsealed a criminal complaint charging Al-Tamimi with conspiring to use a weapon of mass destruction against U.S. nationals outside the U.S., resulting in death. Al-Tamimi was also added to the FBI's Most Wanted Terrorist list, and since the United States and Jordan do not have an extradition treaty in force, we would like to discuss how we can assist in resolving the case.

Jordan is a key contributor to the U.S.-led coalition to counter the Islamic State and a valued friend. We appreciate the relationship between our two nations and look forward to our continued work together.

Sincerely,

Lee Zeldin, Member of Congress
Ed Royce, Member of Congress
Eliot Engel, Member of Congress
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Member of Congress
Ted Deutch, Member of Congress