Editor's summary:

United States — Yesterday (3/9) a federal indictment was unsealed charging Colleen R. LaRose, aka "Fatima LaRose," aka "Jihad Jane," with conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists, conspiracy to kill in a foreign country, making false statements to a government official and attempted identity theft. The Pennsylvania resident was arrested in October 2009.

According to the DOJ news release, among other charges, LaRose and five unindicted co-conspirators located in South Asia, Eastern Europe, Western Europe and the United States are accused of using the Internet to recruit men "to wage violent jihad in South Asia and Europe", and recruit women "who had passports and the ability to travel to and around Europe in support of violent jihad."

While U.S. authorities have not publicly confirmed this, it is believed that LaRose was plotting to kill Swedish cartoonist Lars Vilks, whose infamous 2007 cartoon of the Prophet Mohammed with the body of a dog angered Muslims worldwide. Furthermore it seems likely that the timing of the indictment is tied to the arrest earlier this week of seven people in Ireland who allegedly are also involved in a plan to kill Vilks.

Posted by: Chef on Mar. 10, 2010 (9:41 am EST)