The Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), an American Muslim advocacy group with deep ties to the global Muslim Brotherhood, advised Muslims to “use caution” when talking to the FBI about its 2010 investigation into Elton Simpson, who on Sunday carried out a jihadist attack on a “Draw Muhammad” free-speech event in Garland, Texas.
According to a 2010 article in the Arizona Muslim Voice, which describes Simpson as “humble, pious, [and] well liked in the community,” CAIR “sent out media alerts to advise our community to use caution when speaking with the FBI.” The author of the piece, Kawthar Ijai, said at the time that CAIR’s advice “is for our own protection.”
CAIR was listed as an unindicted co-conspirator in the largest terrorism financing trial in United States history. The American Muslim group was accused of raising money for the Holy Land Foundation, a charity that had solicited millions of dollars for Palestinian terrorist group Hamas. The United Arab Emirates recently listed CAIR independently as a terrorist organization.
The article offers unique insight into the background of the Texas shooter. The author said that Elton Simpson, “or as we know him, Ibrahim,” volunteered at the Islamic Community Center of Phoenix mosque, and that his “favorite topic” to discuss was Islam. Simpson was known to sport a “white thobe” (Muslim male garment popular in Gulf countries) and a Kufi, a hat worn by Muslim men in the Middle East and North Africa, according to the author.
Simpson also made an effort to discuss Islam with the children at the mosque, according to the article. “Kids adore him. He is always talking to the kids on their level, throwing a ball around with them and playing games with them,” the author wrote. “They actually come home from their classes with some knowledge about the character of the Prophet Muhammad,” she added.
The piece would conclude with a plea to raise bail money ($12,000 dollars) for Simpson “so that our brother can remain free on bail while awaiting his hearing.”
Simpson and a jihadist accomplice attacked the Muhammad Art Exhibit on Sunday at the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland, Texas. Both terrorists were killed by police, who had been tasked with providing security for the event. The event, organized by Pamela Geller of the American Freedom Defense Initiative (AFDI), was headlined by Geert Wilders, a dutch politician who is the founder of the Party for Freedom in the Netherlands.