On Tuesday, federal prosecutors charged Ahmad Khan Rahami with terror charges for planting explosives in New Jersey and a bomb in New York that injured 31 people. The charges include use of a weapon of mass destruction. By Wednesday he was still in the hospital recovering from the ten gunshot wounds he received when he was arrested in Linden, New Jersey, on Monday.

Federal agents wanted to question Rahami, but he was allegedly not cooperating. It is unclear if his lack of cooperation was simply due to his injuries. Investigators are examining his trip to Pakistan a couple of years ago, and whether he got any money or training from any extremist organizations.

Rahami was born in Afghanistan and came to the U.S. as a young child. He previously worked as an unarmed night guard at an AP administrative technology office, where he talked a lot about politics and expressed sympathy for the Taliban and contempt for the U.S. military.

‘The sound of bombs will be heard in your streets,’ New York attacker vowed in journal https://t.co/BxaNgD0nSr

— The Independent (@Independent) September 21, 2016

The complaints filed against him reveal that he bought bomb ingredients on eBay and tried them out in a backyard—as shown on a video on a relative’s cellphone only two days before the attack in New York. He also kept a journal in which he had written down messages including that he would rather die as a martyr than be caught and that bombs would resound in the streets.

1. Authorities have published photo showing an excerpt of Ahmad Khan Rahami’s notebook where he notes inspiration from both ISIS & Al Qaeda pic.twitter.com/sZQcsY8Izm

— Lisa Daftari (@LisaDaftari) September 21, 2016

There were also references to Osama bin Laden and other well-known terrorists such as Anwar al-Awlaki, the radical cleric who has incited acts of violence, and Nidal Hasan, the former Army officer who was behind the shooting in Fort Hood in 2009.

Rahami was investigated for terrorism as early as 2014, when his father notified the FBI that his son was “doing real bad” and had stabbed his brother and hit his mother. He didn’t want to accuse his son of terrorism, but said that he was hanging out with the wrong kinds of people. The federal agency investigated Rahami for two months but didn’t find anything serious enough to charge him.

Also on Tuesday, a New Jersey court granted Rahami’s ex-girlfriend Maria Mena full custody of their child, saying there was a risk for irreparable harm to the child in the case of continued contact with Rahami. He was prohibited from having any more contact with his child. It was also revealed that he owed Mena more than $3,000 in child support.

The FBI questioned Rahami’s current wife in the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday, who said she had no idea about her husband’s violent plans.

Emma Von Zeipel

Emma Von Zeipel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. She is originally from one of the islands of Stockholm, Sweden. After working for Democratic Voice of Burma in Thailand, she ended up in New York City. She has a BA in journalism from Stockholm University and is passionate about human rights, good books, horses, and European chocolate. Contact Emma at EVonZeipel@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Federal Terror Charges Filed Against New York Bomber Ahmad Rahami appeared first on Law Street.

Armed men attacked the American University of Afghanistan in Kabul on Wednesday, while trapped students tweeted for help from inside the school. Gunshots and explosions were heard as hundreds of students and foreign staff members were trapped inside the campus.

According to Reuters, 12 people, of which seven were students, were killed in the attack. An additional 44 people were wounded. So far, no organization has taken responsibility for the attack.

One man who managed to escape the violence told the New York Times that the sound of gunfire made many students rush out through the emergency exits. Shortly after that, they heard an explosion. Two of his friends were injured and hospitalized; one jumped from a window, and one was shot in his back.

Ambulances and security forces quickly arrived at the university, and a team of police officers entered. Gunfire started again shortly after that and two attackers were killed. Even though the attack happened at night, many were still on campus taking evening classes after work.

Police officer Ahmad Jawad told the New York Times that someone detonated a car bomb outside of the school for the blind, which is adjacent to the American University. The attackers seem to have entered that school and then start shooting at the university.

In the early moments of the attack, students as well as relatives and friends on the outside desperately called for help on social media. A pillar of smoke was seen above the university during the attack. This picture from war correspondent Mustafa Kazemi shows the view from a distance.

Photo attributed to the attack on American University of Afghanistan in Kabul pic.twitter.com/EVunzOpyd3

— KAZEMI, Mustafa (@CombatJourno) August 24, 2016

Reporter: Fires on American University campus in Kabul; witnesses hear blast, gunfire. https://t.co/UBfOhQUFFapic.twitter.com/2lYGeLDL5x

— CNN Breaking News (@cnnbrk) August 24, 2016

Pulitzer Prize winner and AP photographer Massoud Hossaini was among the people on campus when the shooting started but escaped with minor injuries.

Afghanistan’s 24-hours news network TOLOnews posted updates about the situation.

#AUAF UPDATE – Relatives of wounded students donate blood at the Kabul Emergency Hospital

— TOLOnews (@TOLOnews) August 24, 2016

The American University in Afghanistan has been open since 2006 and has been an important symbol of partnership between Afghanistan and the United States. The U.S. funds many scholarships for Afghans to study there, including many for women.

On August 7, two professors, one American and one Australian, at the American University were kidnapped by a criminal group according to ministry spokesman Sediq Sediqqi. It remains unknown whether there is a connection between that kidnapping and the recent attack.

Emma Von Zeipel

Emma Von Zeipel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. She is originally from one of the islands of Stockholm, Sweden. After working for Democratic Voice of Burma in Thailand, she ended up in New York City. She has a BA in journalism from Stockholm University and is passionate about human rights, good books, horses, and European chocolate. Contact Emma at EVonZeipel@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Armed Men With Explosives Attack American University in Kabul appeared first on Law Street.