Hasidic Jew Who Converted to Islam Admits Making Anti-Chabad Threats

Image by courtesy of vozisneias
A Jewish convert to Islam pleaded guilty to inciting violence, including a call to leave Chabad headquarters in New York “a message from Islam.”
“Yousef Mohamid Al-Khattab (a.k.a. Joseph Cohen), 45, of Atlantic City, New Jersey, pleaded guilty yesterday to using his position as a leader of the ‘Revolution Muslim’ websites to use the Internet to place others in fear of serious bodily injury,” said an Oct. 31 statement from the Alexandria, Va., office of the FBI.
Al-Khattab pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court. He faces a sentence of up to five years when he next appears in court, in February.
Many of his incendiary calls were made during Operation Cast Lead in 2009, among them a call to seek out leaders of Jewish federations “and deal with them in their homes.”
He also posted a map with directions to Chabad headquarters and, according to The Washington Post, called on his readers to “make EVERY attempt to reach these people and teach them the message of Islam or leave them a message of Islam.”
The Post said al-Khattab was a dual Israeli citizen.
A before-and-after photo on the Vosizneias news website showed a younger al-Khattab when he was a haredi Orthodox Jew.
Did you know that only 2% of Forward readers donate to support our nonprofit newsroom? That 2% make it possible for millions to read the Forward without a paywall or subscription — removing any barriers to the full and fair Jewish story.
But while the Forward is free to read, it isn’t free to produce. Big stories — like deep dives into the antisemitism data, political scoops or reporting trips to college campuses — take months of research and fact-checking. All while we keep you informed of what you need to know each day.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Forward Publisher & CEO
